New Acquaintances
by Kima00
Summary: A stranger appears at the Ponderosa badly wounded and nearly unconscious. He's wearing the uniform of the army of the Confederate States of America. What adventure will await the Cartwrights? Warning contains cp of minor in some chapters.
1. New Acquaintances

**New Acquaintances**

"Dad, I'm afraid of deep water." Sara whimpered. The water of the pond was just reaching her ribs. Black Knight was standing at the edge of the water barking wildly, anxious because he was feeling his mistress' fear.

"Come Sara. I promised to teach you how to swim, didn't I? And for that you have to come into deeper water." Adam coaxed extending his arms towards her. Sara took another step towards her father then stopped again.

"If you don't come now, I won't teach you how to shoot when you're fourteen." Adam threatened grinning.

"I don't need to know how to swim ta learn to shoot." Sara pouted.

Adam sighed, taking some quick strides towards Sara he picked her up by the waist, making the decision for her.

"Lemme go! I changed my mind. I'll learn to swim when I'm older." Sara protested as Adam carried her further into the pond.

"Oh, no you don't sweetie."

Sara splashed water at him, trying to get him to set her down. Adam simply continued on his way deeper into the water until it reached his shoulders.

"Lemme go!" She hollered, yet clung tightly to him, wrapping her legs around his stomach and her arms around his neck.

"Shhhh, calm down. I have you." Adam soothed the anxious child rubbing her back. Gently he released himself out of his vice-like grip. "Now stay calm and make the movements we trained." He supported her stomach with one hand and tipped her so she was horizontal in the water. Immediately she tried to swim with hectic movements towards the land and he had to put another hand under her so she wouldn't be able to wriggle out of his grip.

"Calm down Sara. I'm holding you. I won't let you swim of alone. Now, move nice and slow. Yes, exactly, good girl." He praised as she slowed her flailing. After another ten minutes he felt her starting to get more confident in the water.

"Now, I'm going to take my hands away Sara, but…."

"NO! DON'T DADDY!" She shrieked immediately clinging to him.

"You sure are anxious." Adam chuckled. Remembering how he had taught Little Joe to swim. The boy had been very fearful too, but after the swimming lessons it had taken him more patience and strength to get him out of the water again. However he hadn't been close as scared as Sara.

"Now, I'm right here. My hands will be right under you, you just have to continue the movements and you won't sink down, I promise." He soothed prying Sara of his side. Several minutes later the little girl was paddling around in the small pond, with her head out of the water, but afloat and enjoying the new challenge immensely. Adam always stayed close at her side laughing with pride.

"Really good, but now we better get home, before it's getting cold."

"No, I wanna swim a bit longer; I'm getting real good at it." She protested.

"You are, but we can get more practice another time. We need to get going. " Adam stated, picked her up and hoisted her over his shoulder.

"Awww, come on dad." She kicked her legs and tried to push herself off. All of sudden Adam lost his grip around her and Sara slipped, much to her surprise, head first into the water. Adam immediately spun around and picked her floundering form up again.

"Why did ya let go off me?" Sara managed to get out between her coughing and trying to rub the water out of her eyes.

"You were squirming like a little snake." Adam accused while patting her back.

"I jist did that because I always do it, when ya pick me up. You should have gotten used to it by now daddy." She complained giving him a distinct glare.

"You're blaming me for falling into the water? I can't hold onto wet slippery squirming snakes." He laughed.

Sara nodded and snuggled closer to her father. The dive hadn't been very pleasant. She definitely didn't want to experience it again. Still chuckling he rubbed her back and climbed out of the water. Black Knight jumped up at him nearly pushing him back into the water in his eagerness to greet him. The dog winced of the sudden pain in his side. "Whoa, buddy, nice to see you too. You're a good watch dog." He said patting the dog to appease him.

Adam put Sara down in front of her Black Knight and went to fetch the towels before the animal licked her to death.

**In the Sierra Mountains above the lake**

Rhys steadied himself heavily on his rifle and looked down on the horse. It was whinnying pitifully. One leg was extended in a strange angle. He felt sick of what he was about to do and knelt down next to the horse's head.

"I'm so sorry." He whispered, put the gun against the horse's forehead and pulled the trigger. He got back up on his legs and looked around. He wouldn't be able to walk far. His left leg was hurting again. The wound, caused by a bayonet being stabbed in his leg, had left his muscles torn and weak. His leg hurt when he consistently put too much weight on it.

With his remaining eye Rhys looked up to the sky, on which slowly the stars started to appear. "If you've let me survive the war to die here in the mountains God, then you really got some strange sense of humor." He muttered and started his way down. His memories drifted back to his past, bringing up unwelcomed images. He reached for the bottle of whiskey which was hidden inside his haggled uniform and took a large gulp. The burn of the liquid effectively chased away the pictures in his head. He put the cork back on and stuffed the bottle once again inside his clothes. He stopped once again and tied the riffle to his back. Then he took the saber dangling uncomfortably at his side in one hand and used it as a walking stick continuing his way down, wincing once and awhile from the pain in his leg.

**Back at the pond**

Adam had just finished wrapping Sara in a towel when they heard the gunshot. Both child and dog jumped at the sudden bang and Adam spun his head in the direction of the noise. However he wasn't worried, from the echo he ascertained that the gunshot had come from far away.

"Dad, I wanna go home." Sara whispered, suddenly uncomfortable as she tugged on the leg of his trousers.

"I think that's the best Sara. Hope Sing will have finished the dinner soon, and we don't want to miss that, do we." Adam grinned. He quickly helped the child back into her clothes and legged her up on Moci's back. Then he mounted Sport and urged him into a quick canter. Moci followed him automatically, always eager to be heading home and wanting to keep up appearances with Adam's horse, Sport.

"Dad, who do ya reckon could have shot that gun?" Sara asked trying to sit straight and not bump up and down like a bag of potatoes on Moci's back.

"Nope, not the slightest, but whoever it is, he's pretty far away from the road. Maybe he's just lost, sounds like he is up at the foothills or the mountains and not even on our lands, so you don't have to be afraid."

"Okay." Sara gave Moci a light kick, so she caught up with her father. Black Knight was jogging next to them. It had been four weeks since he had gotten shot, and the dog was feeling much better, but still felt the wound if he got too active.

The minutes until they reached the house passed quickly, but in silence. Sara was tired and Adam was worried about the shot they had heard. There weren't many people who would go up into the mountains at dusk, so he was pretty sure it wasn't a hunter or one of the locals.

They rode into the barn and Sara dived from Moci's back into the haystack, then turned around on her back and let out a huge yawn. Stretching herself she mumbled, "I'm tired daddy." In a tone that somehow sounded like a plea and in the hope that her father would carry her into the house and into bed.

"Oh no Sweetie, you won't go into bed yet. First you take care of Moci." He stated grinning seeing through her little plan in no time.

"But dad, I'll do it tomorrow." She begged.

"Would you like it to go into bed covered in sweat, dust and dirt?" Adam asked.

Sara shrugged and replied, "Wouldn't mind, but I bet you would."

He laughed, picked her up and placed a kiss on her forehead. "You're right, and I think Moci and Sport would too, so get on working, it won't take long." He ordered gently and sat her down on her feet again.

He was right. Fifteen minutes later a very drowsy Sara was carried out of the barn by her father, who tried to keep her awake until after supper. Undressing then redressing a sleeping child was a difficult task and she still needed to eat dinner. Sara had put on some weight since she had come to the Cartwrights, but in Adam's opinion she was still awfully thin, though Ben said he exaggerated and if he continued to feed her like he did now, they would have a female Hoss in the family in no time.

Adam took her over to the dinner table and sat her down on the chair.

"Daddy, 'm tired. Not hungry." Sara protested and lay her head down on the table.

"It's only half past seven Sara." Adam said grinning. "Usually you protest when I want to put you into bed at this hour."

"I had a really busy day, daddy." Sara playfully stuck her tongue out at him giving him a very tired and cheeky grin.

"But you're still awake enough to be cheeky aren't you?" Adam teased and tickled her sides. Giggling Sara tried to slap his hands away. "Awake enough for some dinner?" He asked increasing his tickle attack causing her to squeal with laughter.

Adam stopped and ruffled her hair.

"I'm awake now, daddy. Stop!" She slapped his hand away and sat straighter in the chair.

A few seconds later the rest of the family joined them at the dinner table and Hop Sing served the meal.

Sara didn't eat much and yawned continuously during the whole dinner. Before they were finished Sara's head dropped down and she nearly fell face first in her dinner plate. Adam quickly dragged the plate away with one hand before she could dip her face in the gravy and caught her head with the other.

"I think a little lady needs to get some sleep." Adam chuckled, rounded the table and scooped the little child up in his arms. It seemed that he would have to fulfill the task of undressing a sleeping child after all. Once up in Sara's room he quickly stripped the pants and shirt of her, secretly glad that she had been able to convince him not to wear a dress today. Then slipped the nightgown over her head and tucked her into bed.

"Sleep tight Sweetheart." He whispered fondly and placed a kiss on the top of her head. Sara however didn't hear the words. She was already deep in her dreams.

**Somewhere on the Ponderosa Land late in the night**

Groaning Rhys pressed his hand against his leg. The wound had opened again. It had done that continuously since he had been impaled with the bayonet. The whole leg of his trousers was now soaked in fresh blood. It was no use to resting here, he had to continue on and find shelter. Steadying himself on his saber he limped on. Suddenly he spotted a light between the trees. A house! He hesitated… Should he go? In this uniform they would surely recognize him as an enemy. He hadn't had any time to steal clean and civilian clothes yet.

Rhys limped towards it steadying himself heavily on the weapon. He wouldn't survive much longer if he stayed in the wilderness. A he would never reach San Francisco if he didn't get this wound seen to or at least rest, giving it enough time to close and heal. With each step he felt the throbbing pain of the laceration and ripped muscle.

"Go on Rhys Heavens. You didn't survive this war to die hundred feet in front of a house." He encouraged himself and continued his way towards the light.

Half an hour later he reached the house. First he thought of just sleeping in the barn, but he needed help. The wound definitely needed to be stitched and he couldn't do that by himself. He heard soft voices from the inside and laughter. It was a pity that he would disturb such a family evening, but he had no choice. Raising his hand Rhys knocked on the door.

The voices became silent immediately. He heard footsteps coming closer to the door and closed his eyes feeling dizzy with the blood loss. The door opened and he looked at a tall man with black hair and a stern face. "Please." He whispered, "I need….." Rhys didn't get any further. Everything went black and he tipped forward.

Adam caught the man and the saber fell to the ground with a metallic sound. He had never seen a man more scarred. The whole left part of the man's face was a mess and his left eye seemed to be gone. He had tied a piece of fabric around his head so the eye was covered.

"Adam!" Ben called as he ran to the door.

"Help me to get him in. He's wounded. Hoss, go to town and get Doctor Martin here." Adam ordered while trying to get a better hold of the man.

Hoss had been waiting silently by the big fire, his rifle inconspicuously at his side in case the late night visitor was a danger. "Okay. I'll go an' get him."

Ben took hold of the unconscious man's legs. Together they heaved him up on the sofa. The man groaned and stirred, but didn't wake.

"I'll go and get some blankets. We need to put pressure on that wound and check his eye, Pa."

"Okay, son." Ben gently took the piece of fabric away. He shuddered at the sight. The left side of the man's face was burned. His left eye was completely gone and a part of his left ear was gone too and so was the corner of his mouth. The beard he had grown was only on his right side. If he hadn't been this scarred he would have looked ridiculous.

Ben knew how that had happened. He had already seen a man similar scarred once before; a gun exploding in the shooters own face, a backfire when one was aiming at something.

**Sara's POV**

I woke up from the noises downstairs. Yawning, I stretched myself and looked around. It was still dark outside and I was still tired.

"Get more water! We need to wash this out!" I heard someone order. It took me a few minutes to figure out who it was. Then it struck me. It was Doctor Martin. He would only come here if someone was hurt. I jumped to my feet and ran out of my room.

"DAD! DAAAAD!" I yelled on the top of my lungs afraid that he might gotten sick or something, or if someone else had gotten sick or hurt.

Sprinting towards the stairs I spotted dad coming up the stairs. His sleeves seemed to be soaked in something. Then I saw it. It was blood. Before I could scream he had already picked me up and carried me back into my room. For being hurt he was really strong. Maybe it wasn't that bad after all.

"Daddy put me down. You're hurt and I don't want ya ta carry me." I protested, but kept still in his arms not wanting to hurt him if he was injured.

"I'm not hurt, little one and neither one of the family." He quickly added as he saw me open my mouth. "I need you to stay in your room now and get some sleep. You have to go to school tomorrow."

"But daddy, you're clothes….." I stopped and jist pointed towards his sleeves.

"A man came injured to our house and needs help. Doctor Martin is helping him now." He said tucking me back into my bed.

"Huh, who? I wanna see." I objected and tried to stand up again.

"Oh no, I don't want you to see. He is badly injured and Doc martin doesn't need you underfoot. You may be introduced to him tomorrow if he is well enough." He stated sternly and went out of my room again, carefully closing the door behind him. As soon dad was outside I was out of my bed. Crouching down in front of the door, I peered through the keyhole just in case he was still outside. He wasn't.

Carefully I opened the door and tiptoed out of my room. Again I looked around for dad, but didn't see him. Slowly I headed over to the stairs as suddenly a heavy hand fell on my shoulder and another one connected with my rear. Startled I let out a squeak before being hauled back into my room, by an angry Dad.

"Daddy….. ow, OW!" I yelped as his hand connected with my backside twice again.

"Sara, didn't I just tell you to stay in bed!" He scolded and sat down on the edge settling me on his lap. He was wearing a clean shirt now.

"But I jist wanted to take a quick look, daddy." I whispered.

"Sara listen!" He put two fingers under my chin forcing me to look up at him. "The man's injuries are very nasty. Plus he has some very nasty scares, and will look a little scary at first. Doctor Martin needs to tend to him. I don't want you starring at him; it's not nice to stare at people who have had an accident. There are many people who do that. They just stand there looking and not helping and that's really, really wrong."

"I'm sorry, but…. but, I did want to help too." I replied somewhat ashamed.

A smile crossed his face as he heard my sincere apology. "I know you would want to help him Sweetheart, but he needs a real doctor." He paused and rubbed my back and arm. I snuggled closer to him and rested my head against his chest listening to his steady heartbeat.

"Daddy, can we say a prayer for him? I can help him that way can't I?" I proposed and looked up at him.

"That's a really good idea, Sweetheart."

I closed my eyes and folded my hands like dad had taught me. "Dear God, ifin you can hear me, please let the man whose hurt get well again. Daddy said I can't help him, cuz I'm too small and ain't a real doctor. I jist want to help too. So please let him get well again. Amen." I opened my eyes again and looked up at dad again. "Was that good?"

"That was just perfect." Dad praised, "Now back to bed." He tucked me in then got up and closed the door.

However I couldn't help but sit up and look to the door when I heard a loud yell of pain come from down stairs.

My door opened again and dad came back over shaking his finger at me. "I know you are curious, but stay in bed Sara, or you will find yourself with a few more swats to your backside."

I quickly lay down again and automatically rubbed the last of the sting from my already sore rear. I had no wish to re-ignite that. But, it was hard not to think of the poor man downstairs.

Dad came over and tucked me in once again as I rolled onto my side. He rubbed my back and started to hum a soft lullaby. There were no more sounds in my room, but the soft rich safe voice of my daddy's song. My eyelids became heavier and heavier and despite my efforts I slowly fell asleep.

**End of Sara's POV**

Adam tucked Sara carefully back into bed and stroked a few strands of her hair out of her face.

"Sleep tight Sara." He whispered fondly. Despite her cheeky curiosity and the fact that she had disobeyed him he was really proud of the little child. She had shown true care for the man and he hoped that her little prayer would help the stranger to get well soon again.

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><p><strong>So here's the first chapter of my new story. I hope you liked it.<strong>

**I want to thank Gaben who beta-read this chapter for me. THANKS!**

**As always reviews are appreciated and constructive criticism even more.**


	2. A Soldiers Story

**A soldiers Story**

Sara woke up with a big yawn and looked around. Getting out of bed she headed for the window to peek outside. The sun hadn't risen yet, but the sky had already turned orange. Her dad and the rest of the Cartwright's would probably still be in bed. Stretching herself she looked to her bed trying to decide if she should go back, go downstairs or crawl into her dad's bed. Deciding the last option was the best she carefully opened the door and tiptoed over to Adam's room.

She paused and looked over to the guestroom, suddenly remembering the strange visitor that had arrived late last night. Surely she could take a sneak view at the man, while everybody was still fast asleep. Quickly and quietly she hurried over to the guestroom and put her hand against the door. Slowly, she pushed it open, holding her breath when it creaked. Before heading in, she threw a quick look over her shoulder and entered. The man was lying on his back, but she couldn't see much. It was still dark. Carefully Sara tip toed over to the bedside table. There was sure to be some matches and an oil lamp.

The man didn't wake up as she stood at his side, but she still couldn't see him well. Tracing her finger over the bedside table she found a packet of matches. She cast one last look to the door then lit the lamp. Raising it high up in the air she took a good look at the man. The fright she got as she spotted his face nearly caused her to drop the light. The man looked like a troll, just like the pictures in the books her daddy's had read to her. He was still asleep_._

_I wonder what his skin feels like? _She wondered. Her curiosity won over her fear and she raised an arm. However, she was still afraid enough to hesitate a moment before she touched his face. But then she shrugged and ran a finger along his cheekbone and the deep scars there.

The man woke up, then screamed. Startled, he gave Sara a push and fell out of the bed on the other side groaning from the sudden pain in his leg. Sara fell roughly on her backside and let out a small yelp, more of surprise than of pain. The lamp fell to the ground. Sara quickly picked it up before any of the oil spilt on the rug. However the base was hot, causing her to hiss from the sudden burn to her small hand.

Rhys shook his head, wide awake now with pain. At least it had chased away the rest of the dream, that had been torturing him; he had still been in the war. With a shudder he remembered the Second Battle at Bull Run.

As his eye adjusted to the light, or lack of, he peered over the bed and spotted a small girl in a nightgown staring at him with a horrified expression. He realized that he too was sitting on the floor and quickly hoisted himself up into the bed again. She had given him quite a scare and she seemed to have gotten one too.

"I'm sorry." He whispered, then spotted her nursing her hand with a lamp sitting on the floor beside her. She must have burnt herself, when she had examined him. Feeling guilty that she had been hurt, he reached out for the light, still flickering on the ground. The child didn't move. He put it back on the bedside table and turned towards her again.

Sara was still staring at him curiosity written all over her face. He gave her a weak smile and went to swing his legs of the bed to sit up, but stopped the movement abruptly, when he felt the sharp pain of his old wound.

Groaning he lay down again and motioned her over to him. After hesitating a moment, she came a few steps closer to him. Slowly, not wanting to scare her again, Rhys took her hand in his and examined her burn. He dipped a flannel in the glass of water that sat on his table and pressed the wet cloth against her skin, cooling and numbing the small burn.

"All better now?" He asked softly.

The girl nodded shyly. "Thank you sir."

"You're welcome little girl." He replied giving her a small grin.

Sara smiled back weakly and Rhys turned his head away from her not wanting her to see his horrible scars any longer than necessary.

"I'm sorry for scaring you, little girl. Ah didn't mean to, but you frightened me."

"My name's Sara, not little girl." Came the silent reply and the she added, "And ya didn't scare me at all."

Rhys chuckled. "Mah apologizes, Miss Sara."

"It's okay, daddy said I ain't allowed to see ya yet anyway, because you're hurt…" She fidgeted nervously as he turned his head to look at her again.

"Exactly, that's why I'm asking myself why a certain young lady decided to disobey her father." Came suddenly came a deep baritone voice from the door.

Sara squeaked and spun around. "D….d-d-daddy. I-I-I-I…. uhm... he..." She stammered trying to think of a good explanation why she wasn't in her bed, where she was supposed to.

"Get back in your bed, Sara. It's still too early for little girls to wander around and especially disturbing a man who needs some sleep and is recovering from a bad injury."

"It isn't too bad." Rhys tried to intervene.

"I know what I saw yesterday, Mister….?" Adam interrupted, then threw him a questioning look.

"Heavens, mah name is Rhys Heavens." He quickly replied.

"My name's Adam Cartwright, but let's continue our discussion on a better time, not in the middle of the night." He turned a stern glare towards Sara who gulped and moved both hands back to her backside. "Sara, apologize and then get back in your bed."

"Yes sir." She whispered bashfully. "Sorry for wakin' ya up Mister Heavens." She said then scurried out of his room, leaving Rhys alone.

As the door closed, Rhys heard the low scolding of a father and the tearful apologizes of a contrite child. He winced when he heard a resounding smack and the following yelp. As the house became quiet again, Rhys sank back to sleep and the dreams that had been haunting him before, returned.

**Flashback**

It had been four weeks since he had been recruited into the army. Rhys grabbed the rifle tighter and looked through the site, aiming it at the officer of a small group of soldiers. They were only ten, but the others were just a small group of scouts. He put the finger against the trigger and aimed directly at the heart of the officer. Then he pulled it.

Rhys knew that something was wrong, when he heard the hammer hitting the bullet casing. The sound was too muffled. He felt the heat, before he heard the explosion. It felt as if someone pressed a branding iron on the left side of his head. Then he dropped to the ground without uttering a sound.

Rhys woke up to the feeling of a wet cloth pressed against the side of his head. With an agonized groan he tried to twist away.

"Hey, Rhys! Don't die! You still have to get your little sis. She'll get furious if you kick the bucket now." Thomas muttered while he continued to wash his wound out. He had known Rhys since they had both joined the army.

Rhys senses were drowned into a world of pain. He didn't recall being picked up, or being carried the mile to the doctoring tents and the front lines closest thing to a hospital.

His dream blurred and transformed again and he found himself back at the Second Battle of Manassas (also known as Second Battle of Bull Run). He could actually feel the sun burning down on his neck and dust of the road swirling around them, making breathing an arduous business. Thomas had given him a soaked cloth which he had tied in front of his nose and mouth, but so much dust stuck to it, that it was nearly impossible to catch any clean air.

"Only ten more miles!" One officer yelled and rode along the line of soldiers marching along the road.

"Only, only. Ah bet this self-important dandy, wouldn't last one mile with our package." Rhys grumbled, causing Thomas to chuckle.

"Well, it's always like this. The soldiers win the battles, but it's the Generals name you remember." Thomas replied.

"At least Major General Jackson is famous for his victories, so Ah know that not an incompetent bastard is leading us."

"Save your breath Rhys, we still got ten more miles to walk. We're famous for our long marches." Thomas grinned. "Jackson will teach them a harsh lesson in strategy." He mimicked.

"Ah hope so." Rhys muttered under his breath so no one heard him. He had no intentions of dying in this war. Casting a quick glance up at the sky, he spotted the dark clouds. Cursing he looked down again. At least the rain would put a stop to the dust, though, it would turn the road into mud and make the marching even more exhausting.

The rain had been pouring down for several hours as they set up camp behind an unfinished railroad. Just as they had finished setting the camp up the rain had suddenly stopped as if someone had shut off a water pump. Sitting in his tent Rhys, took of his boots and inspected his feet. They looked quite good. Only a few blisters here and there. He grabbed one of his spare-shirts and took out his bayonet. Cutting off a part of one sleeve he slit it into stripes with which he carefully bandaged his feet.

"How are you doing?" He looked up and spotted Thomas peering into his tent.

"Just some blisters, that's all."

"Good, then come and grab some food. You have to eat while you're walking. Our Scouts have spotted a Union force near a farm. They're about two thousand men. Jackson has ordered our division and some more to attack. We're six thousand against two thousand. That'll be an easy victory." The soldier grinned.

Groaning Rhys got to his feet again and grabbed his Enfield Rifled Musket. "Yet, still many of us will die there." He replied with a grim face.

"We'll see about that. Come now you pessimist." He patted Rhys' back as he made his way out of the tent.

They both quickly ran to their ranks with their weapons ready as they heard the sound of heavy artillery fire.

Their commander Colonel William Baylor rode up to them and ordered them to march. They heard gunfire all too soon, as they approached the battle scene.

"REMEMBER! YOU'RE JACKSON'S STONEWALL BRIGADE! YOU NEVER WAVER, NOR DO YOU FLEE! NOW TEACH THESE YANKEES A BLOODY LESSON!" The colonel yelled.

Rhys squinted his eyes trying to discern the battle in front of him. With the smoke of battle, nightfall seemed to come all too quickly. Rhys hated fighting in the dark. All of sudden he spotted men in front of him and they were wearing blue.

He heard roared orders and loaded his gun, took aim and fired. Seemingly untouched the men came closer took aim and fired, while others reloaded. From everywhere he heard screams of pain as the bullets hit their targets. He glanced to the left and spotted Thomas frantically reloading his gun. The puff of smoke from all the guns coalesced created a nearly impenetrable wall of smoldering air, effectively covering the enemy.

Rhys looked around; there was almost no cover anywhere.

"TAKE AIM!"

He heard the order and moved automatically.

"FIRE!"

Again he moved without thinking, just trying to press away the urge to run and take cover. This was insane. The others were fewer and they just stood there and kept firing at each other like some damn puppets. Why didn't the Union retreat?

A bullet whizzed past his head, so close that he could hear it. The firing of volleys went on and on, an endless nightmare he was unable run from. Suddenly he heard someone groan just left from him, but he didn't look in the direction of the noise. He couldn't help, so he just kept firing.

After almost two hours of constant volleys, the Union finally started to retreat and so did the Confederates. Rhys turned to Thomas, but another now stood in his place. Panic gripped him and he searched the ground, finally spotting his friend; the one that had carried him all those times. He was dead. A bullet had taken him directly in the chest.

Rhys woke up with a scream.

**End Flashback**

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><p><strong>TBC<strong>

**Thank you for beta-reading it so quickly Gaben and as for the others I thank everyone who reviewed and it would be nice if you would do it again :)**

**Happy new Year!**


	3. School and Tales

**School and Tales**

Adam helped Sara down from Sport in front of the small school house, then raising a finger towards his daughter; he gave her a stern look and said, "Behave!"

"YES, SIR!" She saluted and tried to click her heels like a soldier, but accidentally hit her ankles against each other. Hopping from one foot to the other from the sudden pain, she tried to keep herself from cursing, while Adam laughed at her indignant expression.

"Don't get into any fights, sweetheart." He jumped off Sports back to give her one last hug and kiss.

"Okay, daddy." She gave him a quick peck to the cheek, then ran off to school.

Adam smiled as he watched her hurry towards her friend Kylie, then climbed back up in the saddle and rode back towards the Ponderosa.

**Sara's POV**

"Kylie! Guess what? A soldier came to our house and Doctor Martin had to tend to him, cuz he was hurt. Now he's at our house and he'll stay with us until he's all healthy again, but he doesn't look nice." I added although I felt a bit guilty saying that.

"My Uncle Robert, who taught me ta forecast the weather, was lookin' really bad too when he had tuberculosis." Kylie replied, "People doesn't look good ifin they're sick, you silly head." She teased.

"No, it ain't like that. He's real sick an' all, and I know you don't look good ifin you're sick. I guess I looked bad too when I got sick. I got a rash everywhere and was real tired all the time. But the man ain't gotta rash. He got real big scars on his face. Half of his head is lookin' like melted wax." I leant closer to her and whispered, "He's lookin' like a troll."

"Hush, that's mean. Ya shouldn't say such things." Kylie snarled and gave me dark look.

I blushed and looked away, knowing exactly what she meant. She had been teased because of her leg ever since she started school and she wasn't able to help how she was. Mister Heaven's couldn't sure help looking like this. I mean, who would want to look like a troll?

"I didn't mean to say it like that, Kylie. I'm jist tryin ta describe him." I tried to explain. Nervously I twisted my fingers and looked down to my feet.

"Oh okay, but ya know why I don't like it. Garrett has teased me long enough cause of my leg." Kylie grumbled, but gave me a reassuring smile; letting me know that I was forgiven.

I grinned, then grabbed her hand and dragged her over to the school house. Miss Evans was already in the classroom and greeted us with a warm smile. Then she turned back to the chalkboard and continued writing up various exercises.

"Good morning Miss Evans." We said in unison, as we headed over to our usual desks.

I peeked at the chalkboard trying to see what we had to do during the lessons. Naturally, I still had trouble with reading. I had learned the letters, just a few weeks ago, or was it months? Anyway, squinting my eyes I tried to decode Miss Evans writing. After a few seconds I gave up. It was still too hard. Sighing I steadied my head on one hand and looked over to Kylie pretending to yawn, like I was real bored.

Kylie giggled when she saw me, unlucky for me so did Miss Evans.

"Well if you're that tired, Sara, you can help me with preparing the lesson. That will wake you up." She said giving me a disapproving glare.

I headed to her desk trying to suppress the blush that grew on my face.

**At the Ponderosa**

Adam headed the stairs up to Rhys' room. He heard soft voices as he approached from the hallway. He opened the door to find Hop Sing just taking away the dishes of a fine healthy breakfast.

Rhys sat propped up on some pillows against the head of the bed and greeted Adam with a smile. "Ah thank ya for yer kindness, Mister Cartwright. I guess you know where I come from." Rhys said and made a gesture towards his tattered uniform.

"Yes, we've already found out where you are from, Mister Heavens. But, please call me Adam." He replied.

"Then you will all have to call me Rhys, Adam." The man replied and handed Hop Sing the last plate.

Adam waited patiently until Hop Sing had left the room, then took a chair and sat down. Rhys watched him the whole time seemingly calm, but Adam could see how his remaining eye was nervously flickering over to the door and back to him, then over to the window.

"You don't have to be nervous, Rhys. We haven't contacted you're regiment or any one from confederates or the Union contingents stationed not far from here. Nor do we want to hand you over to the sheriff."

"Do ya want to know mah reasons fer leavin?" The young man asked directing his gaze towards him.

Adam was close to a shudder now that he was close enough to the young man's face and his horrific scars. Doc Martin had removed a dirty piece of cloth which had been covering the cavity where his eye once had been.

Rhys embarrassed by his stare immediately turned his head away. "Please give me a piece of fabric so Ah can cover it," he asked.

Adam shook his head. "I can't do that. You've got a small infection and the doctor said it needed the air or it would spread. I apologize; I did not mean to make you ill at ease. "

Rhys grunted an incomprehensible answer then said, "Ah assume you want to know why I'm here?"

Adam nodded.

"Simple fact is sure, Ah am a deserter. Ah've had enough of this war and just want to find mah baby sister." He said then whispered hoarsely, "My best friend died in the Second Battle of Manassas and I didn't even see it." He broke off with emotion, but quickly and tried to gain control over himself again.

Adam had meanwhile dragged a chair closer to the bed and sat down. He waited patiently, folding his arms and crossing his legs as he waited for Rhys to regain his composure.

"Well then I'm guessin tha best place ta start is the beginning. My mother was from Wales. She married a man called Evan, but he liked a drink and died during a fight in a Tavern brawl when I was eight. With little left, ma mother did what a lot of other widows did at thet time, looking fer a new start a new life, and came to America, as an indentured housekeeper to a family in Vicksburg, after she served her time, she married the owner of a small saloon.

We weren't rich but we had enough to live. Robert had owned Saloons in New Orleans, and had moved his business to Vicksburg after his mother died. He was a good father. He didn't drink like my last father Evan, nor did he get into fights.

After a year my mother gave birth to my sister, Armelle, named after Roberts mother. Ah was the proudest big brother ever." A broad grin crossed his face, but was quickly clouded as darker memories came to the surface,

"Two years later a fire burnt our house down. Ah got out and managed to save Armelle, however my parents didn't make it. So now Ah was all alone with a two year old. How was I supposed to take care of her and the Saloon, Ah was too young. Rumors of a war between the states were steadily growing. There were fewer jobs. And when the trade was blocked, we couldn't get any supplies, so Ah sold the Saloon to Robert's bartender: Which wasn't much." he sighed.

"Ah decided to get her out of there and travelled to San Francisco and put Armelle into a home, an orphanage. Ah couldn't find work in San Francisco either. A man called Samuel a good friend of mah stepfather's, offered me a job in his sawmill back in Vicksburg. He knew of mah situation and offered me a very good wage. Ah wanted to take a job in San Francisco, that way, even if Armelle got adopted into a fine family , Ah could still see her, watch her grow, make sure she was safe, but I didn't find one with an as good wage. So I returned to Vicksburg leaving Armelle in San Francisco…."

He was abruptly cut off as Little Joe burst into the room. "There you are Adam. I should have known that you would hide in here, leaving all the work to us." He grinned, then remembered why he was there. "I will go and fetch Sara from school today if that's okay with you. I have to go and pick up the new horse I bought for Pa's birthday."

"Okay, but don't let Sara ride it or get too close to it. I have seen that animal, and it isn't broken in yet." Adam stated.

"I know, I know. I'll may have time to o bring it home before I go and get her, but if I can't bring it home before fetching her I'm gonna be real careful, big brother, don't you worry. See you later then." With that Joe disappeared as loud and as fast as he had entered. .

Rhys had waited patiently until the brothers were finished. Adam turned back to him and motioned him to continue.

"Ah returned to Vicksburg and worked there for three years savin' all as much money as I could. That's when everything went wrong. Ah wasn't any older, than that young brother of yours, jist turned sixteen, when the war started and I was forced to join the army. For one and a half year Ah fought for rich southern land owners, who didn't want to lose their trade, because of new laws. They also wanted their cheap labor, cheaper than the indentured servants like my mother, slaves, so they could keep livin' in their big mansions and the poor of the south got poorer. Ah know there were other reasons, probably more valid, even more important, but I never understood the politics of it. I really didn't know what I was fightin' for, and Ah as hell didn't no longer believe in its causes. So, all the time I kept looking for a good opportunity to run away, but didn't find any until after the Second Battle of Manassas. Ah finally managed to flee, but, as you can see, I had gotten severely injured. Ah wanted to get back to San Francisco to get Armelle. Ah couldn't travel along the coast; there were just too many cities, considerate of the south, so I decided to take the way through the mountains and well, not a smart move considerin' my injuries. Ah thank the lord, I met you."

Adam didn't move for a several seconds while he was thinking of everything the man had told him, but finally he said. "I think I speak for my family when I say that we will help you to get you to San Francisco, but first we have to get you healthy again."

"Ah…. I don't know what to say, except….Ah will forever be in yer dept Adam." He whispered with unsteady voice.

**Virginia City Sara's POV**

Yawning, I looked out of the window then back to my slate. Kylie was already finished with her math exercises and she was nudging me with her elbow, to get me to start working.

"Sara, you can't jist keep lookin' out of the window all the time." She hissed. "Miss Evans will get angry with you if you don't finish your exercises."

"Okay, okay, just stop pushing." I grumbled, then quickly scribbled something.

"No, that's wrong. 26+59 ain't 74 it's 85." She corrected.

"Well ya Know-It-All, then you can solve them all, ifin you're so good." I snarled and pushed the slate away.

"I just want to help." She mumbled miffed.

Feeling a small pang of guilt; I had been unfair to her, I looked down on my exercises again whispering an apology.

"Kylie! Sara! Have you got anything to share with the class?"

We both looked up and spotted Miss Evans glaring at us. We quickly shook our heads and I continued to work, while Kylie whispered the correct answers to me. Finally after what seemed to be hours we were dismissed.

Uncle Joe was waiting outside the school next to Cochise and Moci.

"Hi Uncle Joe!" I yelled and ran over to him. He met me halfway, picked me up and swirled me around in the air.

"Hello there Shorty." He grinned and settled me on his left arm. "How has your day been?"

I glanced over to the school and spotted Miss Evans standing in the doorframe looking at the other kids. I leant closer to Uncle Joe and whispered, "Boring."

He giggled and sat me down again. "Well, now you're free to do whatever you want or at least nearly everything what you want." He retrenched, causing me to laugh. It was always fun to have Uncle Joe around. He was more like a big brother and not like an Uncle at all, though I never had one of them before I came here, so I couldn't be sure.

"Come on, lets ride home now. I've gotta show you a new horse."

I waved good-bye to Kylie and Little Joe sat me down on Moci's back.

**End of POV**

As soon as Sara's feet touched Ponderosa turf, she ran over to the enclosure and watched the black stallion in awe.

"He's wonderful Uncle Joe." She marveled and looked back to her uncle, who was wearing a proud grin on his face.

"Yes, he's a beauty isn't he? I'm gonna break him in this afternoon." He said and steadied his arms on the fence. Sara climbed up and sat down on it while watching the black horse nibbling on some tufts of grass.

"Can I ride him?" The girl asked not really paying any attention to what Little Joe had said.

"He isn't tame yet Sara. It would be very dangerous for ya to go close to him."

"But he's lookin' real gentle."

"He wasn't so gentle with me Shorty. He's a real little devil; one end bites and the other kicks, but I'm sure once he's broken in, he's going to be the most wonderful horse in the whole world." He said grinning.

Sara giggled then turned her head to look at him. "Can I give him a piece of sugar then?"

"He won't come over to you. See, he has walked to the other side of the yard. If we round the corralled fence, he would move, always aiming to keep the same distance from us." explained Joe.

"I could jump into the fence and walk over to him. I'm sure he will get gentler, if I give him some sugar cubes." She replied giving Joe her puppy-eye-look, he found so hard to resist.

"No, you won't go in there." He stated and gave her a stern glare. Sara simply giggled and gave him a peck to the cheek. She didn't take him seriously for one second. He had never swatted her, just scolded her on some occasions, all she needed to do was to say sorry and she was forgiven. One time she had even been able to talk him into playing a prank on Adam. Of course it had been a harmless prank, but Adam had still dropped her in the horse trough after he had found out who had put the itching powder into his clothes.

Little Joe lifted her off the fence and sent her into the house to do her homework. She only had some math exercises and Kyle was going to help her with then in the morning just before school. She placed her schoolbooks on the table and headed over to the kitchen. If she could prove to Little Joe that the horse was gentle, he would surely let her ride it. First she needed to change her clothes, so she raced up the stairs, forgetting about the stranger who was laying the guestroom. She changed into an old pair of little Joe's britches and ran down to the kitchen.

Peeking around the corner, she checked to see if Hop Sing was around. He wasn't! She hurried into the kitchen and looked around for the porcelain cup with the sugar cubes. She soon spotted it high up on the dresser shelf beside the cookie jar!

Sara listened and concentrated and when she wasn't able to hear anyone, she grabbed a chair and climbed up on it. Standing on the top of her toes, she stretched her arm up to the porcelain cup. Her fingertips brushed against it and then she had to slump down again to relax a bit. If she jumped she could easily grab it, but the chair wasn't very steady and if she fell she would get hurt.

Making up her mind she crouched down on the chair and took a mighty jump. She quickly grabbed the porcelain cup and landed securely on the chair again. Letting out a relieved sigh, she quickly put three sugar-cubes into her pocket. She glanced once again up to the cookie jar and grinned. _A cookie or two wouldn't hur_t. She thought. Placing the porcelain cup on the oven, she jumped up and grabbed the cookie jar.

Sara quickly climbed down from the chair with the cookie jar safely tucked under her arm. Then she headed for the table and opened the jar. Taking a deep breath, she took in the scent of freshly baked chocolate biscuits and a broad smile crossed her face. She eagerly grabbed a handful and shoved them into her pockets, but as she went to close the jar again she frowned and stopped. Now there were barely any cookies left. _Hop Sings gonna figure out that I've taken some. Maybe I should put some back. _She mused_._

However the decision was taken out of her hands as Hop Sing came bustling into the kitchen humming a Chinese folk song.

Hop Sing stopped dead in his tracks as he spotted the child and the guilty expression on her face. It was the perfect copy picture of a child getting caught with the hand in the cookie jar. Sara was too astonished to say anything in her defense, so she just stood there staring at Hop Sing with her mouth wide open.

Placing the fresh basket of garden vegetables on the table, he slowly reached for the wooden spoon, calling Sara to her senses and she rattled on.

"No, please, Hop Sing, please don't be mad! I jist wanted to take a small piece of sugar for the horses and then I saw the cookie jar and thought a cookie or two wouldn't hurt anyone, but then I took too many and went to put em back." She pleaded and rounded the table at the same time keeping her distance from the angry cook.

"Little girl, know taking without asking no good. Uncle Hoss no good example for little girl; always taking cookies when Hop Sing isn't lookin'!" He scolded while he tried to catch up with Sara, who was meanwhile nearly running around the table to keep herself out of range of the wooden spoon welding Chinese cook.

"Yep, that's what I mean, Hop Sing. It's all Uncle Hoss' fault. It's his bad influence. I couldn't help it." Sara squealed as Hop Sing closed in and grabbed her shirt.

"Little girl knows stealing is wrong." He replied and smacked her butt quickly two times with the spoon, causing the child to yelp from the sudden sting.

"OW! STOP! No fair. Uncle Hoss doesn't get smacked." She cried while she tried to twist out of his grip.

Hop Sing led her over to the kitchen table and pointed towards the cookie jar with the spoon. "Put all cookies back, little Missy."

Quick to obey Sara reached into her pockets and put all the cookies she had taken back in. "Still not fair. I bet ya wouldn't have smacked Uncle Hoss." She accused while rubbing her butt.

At that Hop Sing grinned and took out one cookie of the jar again handing it to Sara. "Little boy Hoss get plenty smacked, when stealing from cookie jar, when he get caught. Little Uncle Hoss learn to ask. If you ask too, maybe get one. Do not make same bad decisions like your Uncle Hoss." He reprimanded.

"Okay, but ya still didn't had ta smack me with that darn ole spoon." The child pouted then headed out of the kitchen, her damaged pride of being swatted somewhat soothed by the cookie she was now nibbling on.

* * *

><p><strong>As usual I owe a big thank to Gaben. Without her this chapter would have been not close as good as it is now and she made a great suggestion for my story, but I can't tell you what it is, otherwise it would spoil everyhing.<strong>

**Ps. Thanks to all of you who reviewed or added me to their favourites or alerts.**


	4. Family Predicament

**Family Predicament**

Sara stuffed the rest of the cookie into her mouth, then headed over to the corral again. The black horse was still nibbling on some tufts of grass, not really paying any attention to her.

"Don't go in there Shorty!"

Sara looked back and spotted Little Joe walking over to her.

"I won't Uncle Joe, don't worry," She replied with a broad grin.

"Good," He bent down and picked her up. A bit surprised, but not uncomfortable with that sudden change, Sara looked up into his eyes. He was trying to look serious, but she could see the grin on his face. It was then she realized where he was heading.

"Oh no, don't ya dare to do that!" She yelled and tried to wriggle out of his grip.

"What?" he asked innocently, then grinned, "I just want to show you what happens if you disobey me." He continued his way towards the horse trough. Stopping in front of it he held Sara out at an arm's length. The girl immediately stopped her wriggling, not wanting him to "accidentally" drop her and blame her afterwards.

"I'm gonna tell daddy!" She stated dead serious.

Little Joe shrugged. "I guess I can live with that," then let her fall. Sara shrieked and reached out for him. Laughing, he caught her just in time and swung her around.

"That was not funny!" She declared pouting as Little Joe sat her down on her own feet again, but he could see a small smile threatening to spread on her lips.

"That depends from whose point of view, Sara," he cupped her chin causing her to look up at him, "One of our ranch hands asked me to come and help him with a calf. It fell into a slough and is stuck. He needs help getting it out. Normally that would be something for Hoss to deal with, but he's helpin' Adam mend fences. So, be one your best behavior while I'm gone. Ya know I'm responsible for you, while Pa and the rest of the family are gone."

"I know, but don't take too long, I wanna play a game of checkers with ya," Sara said.

"I'll be back in an hour," He let her go and headed for the barn, but then turned around again, "Oh, and Sara, don't go near that horse," He reminded.

"Yeah, yeah."

"I mean it, if I catch you inside that corral you'll feel my hand on your backside little girl," He warned.

"I thought you'd drop me into the horse trough?" Sara quipped, though she was a bit worried about his serious tone. However, she quickly shrugged the feeling off; Little Joe had never and would never swat her, she was sure of it.

"Well, maybe I'll do that too." He waved good-bye to her and went into the barn. He nearly stumbled over Black Knight, who had made himself comfortable in the entrance. The dogs tail pounded against the ground when Little Joe crouched down next to him and scratched his head.

"Keep an eye on Sara, will you?" He said and moved his hand under the dogs chin. Black Knight's tail moved faster when Little Joe scratched a spot he especially liked.

"I've gotta go now, but I'm sure Sara will be in soon to pat you." Little Joe grinned then headed over to Cochise and saddled him. A few seconds later he rode out of the barn, then took off at a gallop.

Sara rubbed her hands grinning; now she had all the time she needed. As soon as her Uncle was out of sight, she ran over to the corral and crawled under it. The horse raised its head and eyed her warily. The child froze; still on her hands and knees she waited until the colt turned its attention back to the grass tuffs growing at the bottom of the corral's posts. She slowly got to her feet and stuck her hand into her pocket, feeling for the three sugar cubes she had stolen from the kitchen. She took them out, careful not to make any loud noises that may accidentally spook the horse, then approached the animal. "Here boy," she whispered, and held out her palm to the beautiful black colt.

However, Sara had not seen Black Knight come out of the barn and follow her. The horse on the other hand had no interest in getting close to the child or the dog; it turned around and headed a few steps away to find another juicy tuff of sweet grass. Disappointed Sara dropped her hand and looked after it. _Maybe he doesn't listen because he doesn't have a name?_" She mused, _"But what was a good name for the horse?"_ After pondering on that problem for a few seconds she decided on the name Ace. Satisfied with herself Sara tip-toed closer to it. She held out the sugar cubes once again on the flat of her flat hand.

"Come, I'm sure ya gonna like the sugar Ace. Moci likes it too," She added in hope to get the horse's interest, but as she got less than ten feet away, the stallion moved to the next post along. Sara smiled, this time he couldn't go much further; he'd come to the last of the posts and the railings to the fence ended at the side wall of the barn. The nervous colt turned back to Sara and snorted, then poured at the ground. It was standing with its rump towards a corner of the corral and didn't see a way out.

Unaware of the danger, the child walked slowly towards the horse her hand outstretched. As the stallion whinnied and stomped his front hoof threateningly, Sara stopped.

"I don't wanna hurt ya Ace. I jist want to give ya some sugar." She soothed and took another step forward. That was the drop. The horse tried once again to back up, but all it could do was press itself harder against the corner of the fence and wall of the barn. When it realized it couldn't get any further it whinnied and reared in the air. Startled, Sara took a few steps backwards, stumbled and fell on her backside, dropping the sugar in the process.

"Ow," she yelped, "now look what ya done, ya got the sugar all dirty"

The colt reared and stomped again, this time landing a little closer to Sara.

It was in this second that Little Joe rode back into the yard. When he had arrived to the slough he had met Adam and Hoss. They had passed by and were already helping the ranch hand drag the calf out off the mud. They didn't need his help, so he rode back, happy to be able to spend some time with his little niece. But, he had never expected to see her sitting inside the corral in front of a frantic horse. A heartbeat later he spotted the dog behind her. Now he knew why the horse was so scared.

The hound was not impressed by the stallion's antics. He crouched down on the ground, then jumped towards his mistress.

Sara had her eyes locked on the horse. She had now realised the danger, the horse's wild eyes and its massive form loomed over her every time it reared. Too scared to move, she just froze sitting on the ground. Suddenly, she felt someone grab the waistband of her britches and dragged her backwards and away from the horse. The stallion took off, kicking out with his back legs, as soon as the child and the dog were at least ten feet from him and no longer blocking him in the corner. He trotted safely over to the other side of the corral.

Little Joe jumped down from Cochise and was running over to the dog who had by now safely dragged Sara under the fence. However the child hit the back of her head with a loud "Plonk" against the lowest plank of the fence as Black Knight pulled her to safety.

"OWCH!" She yelped and Black Knight immediately let go of her. Barking anxiously he ran over to Little Joe and tugged onto his sleeve, dragging him over to his mistress, trying to hurry him up. Sara was still sitting on the ground rubbing the back of her head with an indignant expression on her face. Now that she was safe, she felt like a fool. It was crystal clear that Ace hadn't been afraid of her, Black Knight had scared him. _Why didn't I simply turn around and order him away?_

She didn't see Little Joe until he crouched down next to her and ran a hand across her head.

"Sara, you alright?" he yelled. In a panic, he didn't wait for her to answer, just started checking her body for any bruises or broken bones. Horrible images of her lying trampled in the corral shot through his mind.

"I'm fine Uncle Joe." She whined and slapped his hands away. He didn't believe her; he kept checking until he had reassured himself that she was alright. He knew from own experience that shock could keep the pain away from your mind for some time.

However, when was sure that she was alright, Little Joe's worries changed quick as lightning to anger. "WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU THINKING? I TOLD YOU NOT TO GO TO THE HORSE! YOU COULD HAVE BEEN KILLED OR TRAMPLED YA LITTLE FOOL!" He yelled giving her a small shake. Then he picked her up, tucked her under his left arm and over his one bent knee before delivering five stinging smacks to her backside.

The shock and surprise that her Uncle Little Joe swatted her, kept Sara silent during the first three smacks, but as the fourth and fifth swat made contact, she burst into tears. Little Joe released her and she threw both hands back and rubbed her stinging backside furiously. Tears of anger, hurt and betrayal trickled down her cheeks as she glared at her Uncle, not caring at all what he was saying. All she could think of that he had swatted her really hard and they hurt real bad too. She pulled out of his grasp, too tearful to say anything, but angry enough to glare.

The look of defiance had Little Joe snap at her, "Are you even listening to me Sara?" He growled, grabbing her hands again. He took a large breath in an attempt to cool the worst of his anger before he could explain to her why it had been wrong to approach the horse.

"No, I ain't listening ta what you're sayin', cause you're jist plain mean. I wasn't in danger; it was just that Black Knight done scared the horse. I just wanted ta give him some sugar and that stupid dog grabs and drags me like some damn raggedy doll out of the corral, then ya yell really loud at me and smack me really hard. I thought ya were my friend. I HATE YA!" Her voice was getting louder and louder for each word that bubbled out of her. At the end Sara jerked her hands out of his and stormed off crying into the house, already feeling the remorse of saying such things to her Uncle. She ran past Hop Sing, who was standing in the big room with a worried expression on her face, nor did she look up. All she wanted was to run up to her room and hide in her bed.

At the top of the stairs, Sara bumped into a pair of legs and was close to falling down all the way she had just come up, when two strong hands grabbed her shoulders and steadied her. "Hey there. Are ya hurt?"

Sara looked up and spotted Rhys looking down at her, a concerned look on his face. At that she burst into a fresh round of tears and wrapped her arms around his waist. A bit surprised by her reaction, Rhys looked around for the child's father. He didn't seem to be here, nor was anyone of her Uncles. Just Hop Sing was standing at the bottom of the stairs looking up at them.

"Little Missy alright?" He asked.

"I think so, I can't see that she's harmed, but please go and look for her family, I'll try to soothe her."

"Okay." Hop Sing hurried out of the big room leaving Rhys alone with the child.

Rhys ran a hand through her hair and felt a small lump on the back of her head. _She must have hit her head._ He mused and bent down picking her up. Sara immediately buried her face in his shoulder.

Rhys looked down at his legs, suddenly very grateful that the Cartwright family had given a pair of clean trousers and a shirt. When he turned around he accidentally put the weight on his injured leg and hissed of the sudden pain. It was still too early for him to walk around and especially carrying a child at the same time. However, he didn't have the heart to put her down and limped slowly back to his bed. By the time he had reached his bed the pain in his leg had intensified remarkably, though no bleeding had occurred. Carefully he sat down and settled the girl on his uninjured knee. Her crying intensified as her butt made contact with his thigh. Rhys took little notice of the child's reaction, thinking she wished to be with her father instead of him.

"Shhhh, shhhh. Hush little girl, everything's gonna be fine." He soothed and rubbed slow circles on her back, like his mother use to do, when he had been upset.

Meanwhile Hop Sing had found Little Joe leaning against the corral fence.

"Little Missy is crying. Come, come quick." He urged waving to Little Joe motioning him to the house.

"I know," Joseph muttered and rubbed both hands across his face. _It's my entire fault. I should have talked to her first, instead of smacking her like that. I always hated it when Pa lost his temper with me and it scared me the hell of a lot too._

"What you mean with you know?" Hop Sing barked.

"I lost my temper with her… I found her inside the corral with a rearing horse. Fortunately Black Knight dragged her out before the horse could hurt her. Once I realized that she was not hurt, I smacked her." Little Joe replied frustrated, "I always hated it when Pa lost his temper with me Hop Sing, it scared me and I don't want her to be afraid of me." Her last words came to his mind and he felt like the lousiest uncle on earth.

Just as Hop Sing went to say something Ben rode into the yard.

"Pa! Good to see you, I need your help." Little Joe said feeling deeply relieved, then he threw a quick glance over to the horse and sighed in frustration.

"With the horse?" Ben asked, "He's a real beauty, boy, you are doing a good job with him."

"He's your birthday present Pa, I'm sorry that I didn't bring him over to another corral before ya came home, but I've got more important things to discuss with you….." He broke off.

"Well spit it out Little Joe. I can only help you if I know what it is about."

Little Joe took a deep breath then repeated the whole story again. Ben frowned and shook his head.

"It's never good to lose your temper with a child, Little Joe. I made that mistake a couple of times with you and I always regretted it when I punished you out of anger or frustration. It's not right and you should talk with her about it."

"A couple of times? I think you lost your temper with me on several occasions." Little Joe mused for a short time distracted from his actual problem, "She said she hates me Pa."

Ben put an arm around his son's shoulders and led him over to the house. "I'm sure she just felt angry. No child likes to be spanked, though a couple of smacks aren't really a spanking, Little Joe. You would have had a much sterner talking too. If I remember rightly I think your brother Adam gave you one himself for a similar act of disobedience and foolhardy behavior. I think Sara is more disappointed, because she thinks of you more than a big brother than an uncle. I bet she already feels sorry for saying such things. Sara is kindhearted but a very impulsive child. She wouldn't want to hurt your feelings." He opened the door and steered a somewhat reluctant Little Joe into the house.

"However, you still have to deal with the issue. She disobeyed you and could have been killed, Joe. You need to talk to her about you reaction and remind her that she needs to mind the adults in this house and Joe, that includes you. You're her elder and an excellent horseman. You may very well have to add a sounder spanking to the one you've already administered. But this time make sure the action is because of the need for her to mind you and be safe." Ben added.

His son gave him a horrified look. "WHAT? I can't spank her again, Pa, she's already hates me, just for a couple of swats, she's going to hate me even more. She might even be scared of me. I'm sure Adam can handle it when he comes home. He can talk to her and add any extra punishment, Pa, but I'm sure she's learnt her lesson."

"Adam isn't going to come home today, Little Joe. He's camping with Hoss near Lake Tahoe. I met him when I came back from town. One of our customers wants to buy some wood and Adam will head up to the lumber camp tomorrow and be away for most of the day tomorrow. Besides, Sara disobeyed you not Adam." Ben added.

"I can't do it. I simply can't. If you leave it to me I will probably just pat her. I've already made a mistake today Pa, I'm going to solve it and talk with her, but I will NOT dish out any more spankings." Little Joe stated with a grim expression on his face.

Ben sighed, "Little Joe….. no one likes to punish their children, but sometimes we have to and you were responsible for her today so it's your turn to take care of her misbehavior this time."

"Aww Pa, I was responsible, I jist over-reacted. Come up at least please."

""Alright….. I will come up talk, with the little rascal, but only if you need my help and I will not tell you what to do. I believe you know what you have to do after your discussion, plus both of you need to be responsible for your actions. And if you think she has learnt her lesson, I would leave it at that."

"Okay, thanks Pa."

The expression on Little Joe's face was nearly comical; he looked as if he would walk to his executioner.

**A few minutes earlier in Rhys' room**

The small child had finally calmed down. Rhys continued to rub her back whispering soothing words into her ears, while she dried her eyes and cleaned her nose on his shirt. He was somewhat amused by her actions, but he was sure it wouldn't be appreciated if he grinned or even dared to chuckle. The girl seemed so small on his lap and even younger than her eight years with the tears running down her face. She was a pretty little thing, and reminded him of his baby sister sitting here on his lap. It was like Armelle when she was a toddler. He could barely recall her face, but he could always remember the feeling of her in his arms when she was sad or sick or just too scared to sleep alone. It felt nice.

"I'm sorry." Sara whispered and looked up at Rhys.

"For what?"

"For cryin' on yer shirt."

He smiled down at her and stroked her hair, "That doesn't matter. Does yer head still hurt?"

She nodded, but added, "Not very much, Sir… I….. I…" She broke off and fresh tears welled up in her eyes.

"Shhhh, why don't y'all tell me what happened?" He proposed hoping to distract her a bit.

"I wanted to give Ace some sugar, but he was scared of Black Knight and went away and but I didn't know that Black Knight was behind me and kept goin' towards him, but he continued to walk away and then he got real scared when he couldn't go any further and reared up. Black Knight grabbed me and dragged me away, then I done hit my head on the plank when he dragged me under the fence. Next thing I knowed, Uncle Little Joe was hollerin at me and smacked my butt real hard because he had said that I'm not allowed to go into the corral. I got mad at him for smacking me and said….. and I said… that I hated him." Sara burst into a fresh round of tears and buried her face once again in Rhys' shirt. However the place she had used before was still wet so she moved her face to a new one.

Rhys hadn't understood everything exactly. He didn't know who Black Knight or Ace was.

"Well… hm…. Who are Ace and Black Knight?"

"Black Knight is one of my best friends and Ace is the new horse Uncle Joe bought." She replied sniffling and in a tone as if it was a world-known fact.

"Is Black Knight a pony?"

"No, he's a dog. He's really big and got long and fluffy fur, but I don't like him anymore. He dragged me out of the corral and hit my head against the plank." She declared with a pout.

"Did ya not think he mighta been trying ta to save ya from the horse?" Rhys asked.

Sara was quiet for a while thinking about what the man had said, "Maybe, but he still hit ma head against the plank."

"Ah think Black Knight didn't do that on purpose Sara, maybe it was just an accident when he tried to drag you out of the corral."

Sara huffed and crossed her arms.

Rhys wasn't sure if he should continue, after all she wasn't his kin. He glanced to the door in hope that her father or one of her Uncles would come in and take care of everything, but no one showed up. Letting out a sigh he repositioned Sara to a more comfortable position. "For starters' darlin' yer Uncle told ya not to enter the corral, right?"

The girl nodded uncomfortably.

"So y'all disobeyed him and went into the corral and tried ta touch a horse ya don't know."

" Ah… I mean …I, "Sara shook her head, she was starting to pick up some of Rhys speech patterns, she couldn't help it she loved the sound of his sing song gentle voice, she especially liked it when he called her darlin'. She tried to explain. "I do know the horse; his name is Ace and he's a colt, and Uncle Joe is breaking him for a birthday present fer my grandpa. Ace is mah friend now, even though he's grandpa's horse, his mah friend and he wouldn't hurt me, Black Knight done scared him that's all."

"Oh really, darling, so y'all been good friends fer a while have ya. Like kin are ya?" he said trying not to laugh at the child. "Seems ta me, y'all like ta tell a few tall tales. Yer Uncle told you clear a simple ta stay away, didn't he?

Sara simply looked down on her hands and went to slip off his lap.

"Oh no, you won't jist walk away because, Ah don't say what ya want to hear." Rhys declared and wrapped an arm around her waist, then continued, "Horses Sara, are very sensitive creatures. If they know ya, they will nearly do everything for ya, but if they don't know ya they're mostly scared, especially young ones, like a colt, that's a youngin in horse years, little one. And often they aren't properly trained. Ya can count yerself lucky that nothing bad happen. If you were mah little girl, you naught be sitting too comfortable either. Ya have been very unfair ta yer Uncle saying those mean words." He frowned.

Sara ignored that last comment. "Why do yer talk funny, like naught and Y'all? Sometimes it sounds like ya talking three different types of languages"

"Suppose Ah' am a bit. I was born in Wales, England, but Ah come out near twelve year ago. I weren't much older than you. My step daddy was from New Orleans, but we lived further down south and considered ourselves southerners, he was a right god fearing man, I guess I wanted ta be jist like him. So I guess I'm a bit of a mixture. Ah tried real hard ta lose some of my welsh accent, I jist wanted ta be like mah new Pappy. He was more a pappy ta me than Ah knew. I guess some of those words jist sneak their way through," he laughed.

"I like the way they sound."

"That's fine, darlin, but did ya not understand what I was tellin ya? Ya need ta understand what ya did was wrong and da….." A knock on the door interrupted him.

"Come in."

The door slowly opened and revealed Little Joe. Sara just gave him a quick glance before she looked down on her lap again. Rhys picked her up and nudged her towards her Uncle. She took several small steps towards him but stopped again. Little Joe came over to her and picked her up settling her down on one arm.

"I love you Shorty." He whispered using his special nickname for her and kissed her forehead. Sara burst into tears and wrapped her arms around his neck.

"I'm sorry too, Uncle Joe, I…. I didn't mean ta say it. I jist got so mad." She sobbed.

"Shhhh, I know Shorty. I know ya didn't mean it." He turned around, went out of the room and headed into hers. Ben was already sitting on a chair in the corner waiting for them. Sitting down on her bed Little Joe placed her on his lap. "Sara?" He put his hand under her chin and tilted her head up, "I know you're sorry and now it's my turn to apologize. I shouldn't have lost my temper with ya. I just got so scared when I saw you inside that corral in front of the stallion. I thought….."

"Ace, his name is Ace." She interrupted, "It's a great name ain't it?"

Little Joe grinned and gave her one quick peck to her forehead. "I love it. However we're not here to talk about horse names, Shorty. I thought you had gotten kicked by the horse or worse even trampled. That can happen to the most skilled rider if they're not careful with a young horse or a wild one. Even horses that have been well handled and broken in and love their owners, even Cochise can be dangerous if he rears. All horses can kill; it takes nothing to scare them. Young colts are especially skittish. They aren't…"

"Skittish?"

"Yes, it means timid, just like you when you first came here. They don't know who to trust. They don't know your human even, some of them. To them you may be a dangerous animal."

"That's it Uncle Joe, Ace must thinked that black Knight was a dangerous animal, like I thought you were dangerous when I first saw you too, because I didn't know you an' all, but now I don't think you're dangerous anymore."

"He probably was afraid of the dog, but Sara, don't try to change the subject. If you had done what I asked, and not gone into the corral, Black Knight would not have followed you. You know he only did what I asked him to do. I asked him to watch over you. Keep you safe."

"But I didn't mean ta scare him all I wanted to do was to give him some sugar." Sara protested.

"I know and I should have told you why you shouldn't have gone in there and that he probably would be afraid of ya. However, point is, Shorty you still disobeyed me and put yourself into a very dangerous situation by going into the corral."

She hid her face in his clothes wrapping her arms tightly around him. Her voice was muffled when she spoke but Little Joe was still able to understand her. "Is that why ya spanked me?"

"Yep, but I shouldn't have spanked when I was so angry, and you're lucky it wasn't more than a couple of swats."

"But they was real hard," she pouted, "that's why I got angry, you ain't never spanked me afore. You're my friend."

Joe laughed, "They weren't that hard, but I should have talked to you about everything. I'm still you're friend Sara, but I'm also older than you and you need ta mind me. Do you understand?"

"Yes, I promise ta mind you Uncle Joe."

"Good, cause your daddy will surely have a talk with you on his own too."

"Oh, Okay. I love you." She whispered.

"I love you too." Little Joe rubbed her back one last time before sitting her down on the bed. Sara smiled up at him, glad that she had gotten off so easy.

"Can I go closer to Ace when Black Knight ain't around?" She asked.

Ben was close to laugh at Little Joe's expression changing from relieved to displeased in less than a second. However he was also concerned about his little grandchild. She hadn't fully understood what her Uncle had tried to tell her.

When Sara realized she may have asked the wrong question she threw a quick glance over to her Grandpa, who simply shook her head at her.

She squealed in surprise when her Uncle once again picked her up, but this time he sat her down on her own feet in front of him. "You know you put yourself into a very dangerous situation today, don't you Sara?" He questioned firmly

She nodded, "Yep, ya told me so, plus you got real mad at me, because I scared ya like that and I'm sorry I got mad too, but now you told me you're sorry and I told you I'm sorry. Ain't that good?

"Well it is good and as I said before, I shouldn't have gotten angry before I spanked you, but Sara, if your father had seen the same thing, he would have spanked you. And I might say it would have been a lot more painful, than the few swats I gave you."

"You're smacks were really hard, but it's okay now ya told me that the horse isn't good yet. He had to be broken in first, but I didn't want to ride the horse, honest Uncle Joe. I jist wanted to give him some sugar. When he's done learned his lesson, and ifin I keep Black Knight away, well then Ace won't be so scared and he'll like me and he won't hurt me" Sara replied by now somewhat worried in which direction this discussion was heading. Her Uncle had a far too serious expression on his face and it looked far too much like her daddy's expression when she was in trouble.

Little Joe shook his head in dismay. Sara had not fully understood the seriousness of her actions, especially if she was planning on doing it again. He had only been able to implant part of the lesson needed to be learnt. "That's not true Sara, he may still hurt you. Horses are unpredictable."

"Unpredictable?"

"Yes, you can't know or even think you know what they may do. They can surprise you. Even experienced horse people know that and they are cautious. Now you promised me you will mind me, and you will mind all the other adults in this house as well. You are not to go anywhere that animal without an adult. Do you understand Sara?"

"Yes, sir!" She answered.

"You disobeyed me with doing this and got yourself nearly trampled. You could have gotten badly hurt when not even…" He hesitated, the word "killed" was on his tongue, but he didn't want to say it again. Sara had already been scared enough this day. "If not Black Knight had dragged you away anything could have happened."

Sara nodded again and a lonely tear trickled down her cheek. Little Joe swallowed the lump in his throat at this pitiful sight and brushed it gently away with his thumb.

"I'm sorry Uncle Joe, I didn't mean ta be bad."

"You're not bad. You're a wonderful little girl who has some troubles to think before they act like every child does, just like me when I was as old as you. When that happens, you have to face the consequences. You're lucky that a consequence wasn't a broken arm or worse. Yelling at me, for dishing out the consequence, was also naughty."

"I couldn't help it. I guess I'm unpredictable"

"Yes, you are." Little Joe wiped his hand across his face trying not to laugh at that comment, while he thought if his Pa had had the same problems with him every time he had found some trouble.

Meanwhile Sara picked up the rant. "So was you Uncle Joe, I never predicteded that you would spank me or even smack that hard, but it really weren't that hard, I just got a real surprise more than anythin'. The stings all gone now, anyways and I feels better cause ya aren't mad at me no more."

"Sometimes the consequence for being naughty, Sara, is a spanking. It's a punishment, but it is also a reminder to little ones still learning that they need to do as they are told, no questions asked, by the adults that they trust. It's everyone's job to keep you safe. Do you think your daddy would be pleased to know what you did today?"

The girl shook her head no and more tears escaped her eyes.

"Verbal answers."

"No. Are you gonna tell him?"

"Y…" But he broke off when he noticed that Ben shook his head. "No, you are."

There was a short break until Sara dared to speak again. "Will ya wait here until dad comes home? I think he's gonna be really mad at me."

"Well we would be waiting a long time, because he won't be home until tomorrow evening. Pa told me he's heading up to the lumber camp today."

"Well that's probably a good thing cause, I reckon, I will have learnt my lesson real good by then. You will be able ta tell him that won't ya Uncle Joe and grandpa?" She turned with a hopeful smile towards her grandfather, but it was her Uncle who answered.

"Yes I will be able to tell him that. And I don't see a reason why he should be mad, because when he has come home you and I will already have sorted this out." Little Joe stated and guided the surprised girl across his knee. Ben quickly stood up and left the room giving them the privacy they needed.

Sara's eyes went wide when she realized what was going to happen, but before she could start to wriggle Little Joe had already grabbed the waist of her pants and pulled them down past her knees.

At that Sara started to squirm in earnest. Her soft cotton union suit wouldn't offer much protection, she knew from experience. Her Uncle had put one hand on the small of her back to keep her in place and went to undo the flap of her union suit which was covering her bottom with the other hand, but stopped in the middle of the movement. If it had been Adam who would give her this spanking he knew it would have been on the bare. However Sara was his brother's daughter and had only lived with them for a few months and he didn't want to scare her or be too harsh. He also remembered what his Pa had told him. He had already smacked her once today and didn't want to scare her unnecessarily.

Sara still lay across his knee with her eyes tightly squeezed shut in anticipation of the first smack. When it didn't come she slowly opened her eyes and tried to push herself up. _Maybe he had changed his mind. _She mused, but didn't get very far. A light pressure on her back clearly said; that her Uncle wasn't finished yet.

"Uncle Joe… will ya spank me or do ya wanna scold me. You're jist being unpredictable too. You've already spanked me once today and if you want to scold me you can do that when I'm standin'." She proposed looking hopefully up at him.

"I'm going to give you another spanking, Sara. You will clearly learn little girl, that I will, even if I'm not the most predictable of this family, punish you when you misbehaved or break the rules. I gave you five swats for disobeying. This spanking is to remind you WHY it's important to do as you are told and a deterrent to stay out of danger. You will stop and think next time." Little Joe replied sternly. He decided that a firm spanking with his hand would be enough; after all she was still quite small for an eight year old. With the decision made he applied the palm of his hand with a light smack to her little backside. He was still worried that he might be too hard on her.

Sara's eyes tightly squeezed shut, but she was surprised how soft the swat was. It barely left a sting. Letting out a small sigh of relief she hoped that the spanking wouldn't get worse. He was much softer than her daddy.

Unfortunately for Sara, Little Joe pretty soon realized that his niece barely felt the swats. He clenched his jaws and put some more force into the next smack. This time Sara yelped and tried to push herself up.

"Not so hard!" She whined, "It hurts!"

"A spanking is supposed to hurt." He replied and kept her in place. He continued smacking her little rump in the same force and rhythm and soon recognized its effects on the child. Sara struggled for all she was worth, but pretty soon she realized that she wasn't getting anywhere with her wriggling. She broke into loud sobs and reached back with both hands trying to shield her behind from further attacks.

"I'm… sowwy stop." She cried.

"Move your hands Sara. We're not finished."

Sara shook her head and Little Joe gathered her small hands in one of his and applied the last five smacks to her sit spots.

Sara lay crying across his knee while he slowly rubbed her back, then picked her up and sat her down on his lap. She only sobbed louder, when her burning backside made contact with his thighs and tucked her face into his chest promising with sincere hitched sniffles and sobs to never ever disobey anyone in the house again, and never go near the corral without an adult or without asking.

Little Joe waited patiently until she had cried herself out and calmed down besides a couple of sniffs from time to time, then let her rub some of the sting out of her bottom.

Little Joe hugged her close one last time then sat her down on the bed. She winced and immediately lay down no her stomach. Chuckling softly he tucked her in with the blanket.

"It ain't even six yet Uncle Joe." She protested, "And I didn't have any dinner too." As if on cue her stomach rumbled.

He laughed and ruffled her hair. "A true Cartwright that's what you are. Stay here for a few minutes. I'll come and fetch you soon."

She nodded.

Joe stood up and went down to the big room where Ben was waiting for him. "Did everything go well?"

The younger man nodded and slumped down in the red chair in front of the fire. "I don't think I'll ever be ready for raising a child Pa. At least she now understands why I spanked her. I'll go and fetch her soon. I just need short break."

Ben chuckled. "I think you will make a great father once you get married. And that's a start, now she does understand that she is not to do it again, not just to mind you, but not to go near a dangerous horse or animal again."

"Yeah, Pa, she said she'll mind me from now on."

"Hmm we'll see. You are right raising a child is a lot of hard work, don't go making any plans too soon, you hear!" He added while heading up the stairs. He wanted to have a short talk with his little grandchild too.

"Never! Not before I'm fifty." He heard the muttered answer.

Ben found Sara in her bed with the covers over her head. She was still sniffling now and then, but had gotten herself mostly under control. He sat down at the edge and gently removed the quilt. A mussed mop of hair appeared. Slowly he dragged it down and revealed the rest of Sara's head and the upper part of her body.

When Sara spotted her grandfather, a fresh lot of tears welled up in her eyes.

"Shhhhh." He soothed, picked her up and sat her down on his lap. "Nothing happened to you and for that I'm grateful."

She didn't start crying again as expected. Instead she took a deep shaky breath, scrubbed her nose with her sleeve and looked up at him. "Are ya mad at me fer being mean ta ya boy?" She whispered.

"No, I'm not,Little One. I know little Joe and you sorted that out. I'm a little disappointed that you didn't do as you were told, and nearly got hurt, but I'm very happy that you're unscathed."

"I'm not, I gotta big lump on my head look." She protested, grabbed his hand and placed it on the back of her head. Actually it was quite a small lump. "And my butt is on fire." She added with a small pout.

Ben chuckled and sat her down on her own feet. "Well you did deserve the spanking Little One."

Sara sulked a bit at that comment, but then she decided to ask her Grandpa something, "Grandpa, Uncle Joe was really disappointed in me today and then he got the same look as daddy when I done somethin' naughty and he's goin' to scold me or smack my butt."

"Well, I think Little Joe learnt some things from your dad Sara. When your Uncle was a small boy just your age he did a very similar mistake and Adam caught him and just the same as you, your Uncle got a spanking, even though Adam didn't like to follow through, he knew it was necessary to teach Little Joe a lesson."

"Okay." She took a few steps closer to him, then wrapped her arms around Ben's neck. "Would you spank me too, ifin I'm naughty?"

"If I had to, yes." Ben replied and hugged her back, "But everything's sorted out, so why don't you go down and cuddle a bit with your Uncle, maybe he even reads you a story."

"Good thinkin' Grandpa." She grinned and went to fetch her new book with fairytales of the brothers Grimm. Then she ran down out the door, nearly running into Rhys as he appeared on his crutches in the hallway.

"Whoa there darlin' yer nearly bowled me over. That's the second time this day." He quipped.

"Sorry, Mr. Rhys, I'm jist going ta spend some nice time with my Uncle, so he knows I love him and I won't be naughty anymore."

"So, y'all sorted it out?" he smiled at the child.

"Yep sure did, grandpa, and me and Uncle Joe. Ya was right, jist like them. Meybe ifin you got nowhere ta go, no family of ya own ya can ask my grandpa ta adopt ya, just like my daddy done adopted me. Then ya could be one of my clever Uncles too."

Sara didn't wait for a response, perhaps, that was wise, because Rhys was suddenly taken aback. She continued on her way down the stairs and into the big room and spotted her Uncle sitting in the big red chair near the fire.

Rhys hobbled to the top of the stairs and watched the scene below. He hadn't known the child was adopted. That was a good thing. He hoped that his Armelle had found such a loving family. He looked at Sara, examining her, her features, her mannerisms and her smile.

"Uncle Joe, can you read me a story?" asked Sara, as she tried to make herself comfortable on his knee.

"Of course, Shorty." Eagerly he grabbed a pillow and offered it to Sara. Smiling she lifted her backside and allowed the pillow to be placed under it, then carefully lowered herself on the cushion. Little Joe wrapped an arm around her and pulled her close to him, then opened the book.

"Now which story do ya want to hear….."

Sara handed him the book of fairy tales. "Well most times I'd say, surprise me, like daddy says, but I ain't too fond of all the unpredictable goings on in this house today. So ya better read Rumpelstiltskin."

Suddenly a bold glint appeared in Little Joe's eyes. "About being unpredictable. I think I forgot a part of your punishment." He laughed.

Surprised and suspiciously Sara turned around. "Ya already spanked me. So you can't do that again."

"No, I didn't think of that." Little Joe placed the book on the coffee table and stood up. He had his little niece in a secure grip and hoisted her up over his shoulder.

Ben hurried down the stairs at seeing the scene. "Little Joe! What are you going to do?"

"Oh nothing serious Pa. I just promised her one thing if she would go into the corral." He grinned.

Sara's eyes went wide. "No! Nononono! Let me go!" She laughed. Now she had her old Uncle back again, the young, playful and cheeky one.

Joe marched towards the door and quickly opened it with his free hand. With the other he had pinned Sara's legs to keep her from kicking.

"Little Joe! What are you going to do with her?" Ben asked this time with firm voice.

"This!" He replied and walked over to the horse trough. Grasping the wriggling and hysterically giggling child over his shoulder he held her over the water.

"I'm gonna get back at ya!" Sara threatened grinning.

"Well, lets see If you can manage that, Shorty." With that Little Joe dropped her into the water. With a loud splash she landed butt first in the water spattering her Uncle with water.

Once she had cleared her eyes from the water Sara looked somewhat puzzled around. When she spotted Little Joe she bit her lower lip and a smile crossed her lips. She jumped out of the trough and managed to capture her Uncle in a very wet hug before he could retreat into the house.

"Gotcha!"

"Yes, you did." He picked her up hugging the wet and shivering child close to his chest, not bothering about the water that was soaking his clothes.

"I best get you both a towel." Ben muttered amused catching a glance of Sara pressing a very wet kiss to Little Joe's cheek, as he headed into the house laughing.

Still at the top of the stairs, Rhys heard the laughter, and watched a proud grandfather bellow to Hop Sing for some dry towels, for the two rapscallions' outside. _Yes indeed_, he thought, _Armelle would have loved to be part of a family such as this, and I'm going to do everything in my power to find her and makes sure she has a good life. _

* * *

><p><strong>AN: I owe a huge shoutout to Gaben who pointed out some crucial mistakes I made and helped me to sort them out. Without her this chapter would have been... well not as good as it is now. So I hope you all enjoyed reading it and if you think this chapter was good, why don't you press that little button at the bottom there. And if you don't think it was very good, leave me a review too and point out the mistakes.<strong>

**I think I was pretty good with guessing one chapter a month. Sorry that I can't write more, but I'm really busy with school**


	5. Saying GoodBye

**Saying Good-bye**

Sara was sitting tightly wrapped into a towel on Little Joe's lap while he read her Rumpelstiltskin. She was still wet from her bath in the horse trough. Her Grandfather was sitting in a blue chair watching the scene over the edge of a newspaper. The only sign of the earlier incidents was that Sara was wriggling around from time to time and made a face.

Rhys grinned and headed down the stairs. His grip around the crutches tightened when he felt the pain in his leg.

"….. and they lived happily ever after." Little Joe shut the book the book and lifted her up.

"Dinner is ready!" Hop Sing announced.

"Great. I'm starving." Sara jumped off from Little Joe's lap and ran over to the table. Half way there she stopped dead in her tracks and about faced, then headed back to her Uncle. "Can I have the cushion please?"

"Sure you can Shorty." He tossed it to her and she caught it with an ashamed smile.

"Ah, Mr. Heavens. Nice to see you are finally able to spend dinner with us. You seem to managing those stairs well too." Ben said and put the newspaper down on the coffee table.

"Thanks to your help, Mr. Cartwright." Rhys replied.

"I had suggested Hop Sing to bring dinner up to your room, but obviously you're already well enough to walk around with the crutches. Come and sit down." He made an inviting gesture with his hand towards the table. Sara had already occupied a chair next to her grandpa.

Rhys inhaled the scent off the food deeply and sighed. "I must say if it tastes as good as it smells, this will be the best dinner I've eaten for a long time." He sat down on the chair opposite to the child and grinned when he heard her stomach rumbling. Little Joe took the chair to his left and Ben the one to his right at the head of the table.

When he spotted Ben fold his hands to say grace Rhys quickly copied him. Sara looked longingly to the bowl with the stew, but also folded her hands after her Grandpa had given her an exhortatory glance.

"Bless us o Lord, and these your gifts, which  
>we are about to receive, from your bounty,<br>through Christ, our Lord. Amen.  
>For food in a world<br>where many walk in hunger;  
>For faith in a world<br>where many walk in fear;  
>For friends in a world<br>where many walk alone;  
>We give you humble thanks, o Lord.<br>Amen."

Within the blink of an eye and the last Amen had barely left Ben's lips, Sara was standing on her chair and reached for the kettle full with stew.

Ben slapped at the child's hands. "Mind your manners Sara! Guests first and you most certainly don't stand on your chair." Her grandfather chided. With a small pout Sara slumped down on her seat again, but not without giving her grandpa a reproachful look.

"You won't starve if ya have to wait a few seconds more Shorty." Little Joe teased and ruffled her hair.

Rhys watched the exchange with an amused smile, but it faded when he remembered his own sister. He so hoped she had found a similar family like this.

"Mista Heavens?"

His thoughts were abruptly interrupted and he quickly looked up. He saw Hop Sing offering him a plate full of stew and Rhys hastily took it out of the man's hands, murmuring an apology.

Soon the rest of the family had all been served a hearty portion and ate under an uncomfortable silence for some minutes.

"Sooo… what are your plans Rhys?" Ben asked before eating a portion of food on his spoon.

"Ah'll go to San Francisco to look get ma baby-sister. Ah wanted to keep her out of everythin', so Ah put her into an orphanage. Ah intend ta look after her mahself, now that Ah can."

"You got a little sister? What's her name and how old is she?" Sara questioned eagerly.

Rhys smiled at the excited little girl. "Her name's Armelle and by now she would be 8 years old."

Ben's interest slightly peeked, Adam had told him of Rhys story, and he thought it knoble of the lad to want and find his sister and take on the responsibility of raising her. Armelle, interesting name, he'd heard it before, that's right it had been one of Marie's cousins names. Armelle the memory was a distant one, but he immediately thought of his beautiful wife and the rest of the dinner conversation became a murmur in the background.

"Kylie and I are eight too. When you've found yer sister ya can come back here and then she can go to school with me and Kylie. I'll protect her from Garrett. That's the bully of our school, or was he's better now, cause his Pa made him stop and apologize and everything, though I don't reckon its gonna last. " She rambled on.

"Ah'm sure she would be happy to have a friend like y'all."

Sara beamed with pride, smiling broadly at the man, then her stomach demanded her attention again.

"If you wouldn't mind, I would like to ask you a question about the war?" Little Joe asked.

Ben was immediately bought back to the present with the mention of War. He hated such talk at the table and he let Joe know he wasn't pleased about him bringing it up with a pointed glare.

Joe ignoring the rebuking glare from his father, added, "I'm just curious is all."

Rhys hesitated a moment but then nodded.

"Where were you stationed?"

"Ah was in the Stonewall Brigade for a short time, but then I was moved to a smaller division." He responded curtly.

"And… how is the war going for the South?"

"Joseph!"

"It's alright. Ah heard the South won the Second Battle of Manassas, but Ah deserted before it ended." His hands cramped together when images of the battle flooded into his mind. He would never forget the expression in the lieutenant's eyes when he stabbed his bayonet into his chest.

"Do ya think the South is going to win?"

"JOSEPH! Now it's enough!" Ben ordered sternly. He knew his youngest son did not agree with the major motivations of the war, but he was concerned about their plight, mainly because his mother was from New Orleans. Little Joe simply felt connected with the southern States.

Rhys directed his attention back towards his plate, so did Little Joe. The rest of the dinner passed in silence, which was occasionally interrupted by Sara's chattering. However, she pretty soon felt the thick tension in the room and became quiet.

As soon as the dinner was finished Rhys excused himself and headed back up to his room. With a groan he lay down on his bed. The images of the battle were still swirling around in his head. He covered himself with the blanket then looked around for some distraction. He didn't see one. Sighing he closed his eyes and focused his thoughts on his little sister Armelle. After a few minutes he was fast asleep and pictures of the carriage ride to San Francisco came to his dreams.

**Flashback**

Armelle was standing on his knees staring with wide eyes out of the small window of the carriage. Twelve year old Rhys kept his hands at her sides so she wouldn't tumble to the ground. Inga, who had been a close friend to his mother, was sitting opposite of him trying to knit a pair of socks for Armelle, but it rather looked to be in Rhys' size. Armelle suddenly squealed and jumped up and down on Rhys' legs pointing out of the window.

"ERY! ERY! ERY! ERY!" She cried. "Look Rhys look!"

The boy was quick to obey and peeked out of the window. He spotted an eagle and understood what she tried to say. "Eryr, Armelle. The word is Eryr." He pronounced rolling the last "r".

Inga laughed softly at the scene in front of her. "What does Eryr mean?"

"It's welsh and means Eagle Ma'am."

She also looked out and sighed. "We'll soon be there." Inga said absent minded then turned her gaze towards Rhys. He knew what she was going to say before she even had opened her mouth.

"Ah'm sure of this Ma'am." He said, but had to fight to keep his voice steady. Armelle climbed down from his lap and sat down on her diapered rear-end.

"Hungry." She demanded and tugged on Rhys sleeve.

"As soon as we're there I'll buy you something." He soothed. The small girl was hearing none of his. She repeated her request, but as her big brother didn't move tears started to form in her eyes.

"Hungry." Armelle pleaded while a big tear rolled down her cheek. Sighing he picked her up and settled her on his lap again. Sniffling she snuggled close to him and he wrapped his arms around her pressing a kiss on the top of her head. The toddler continued to whine and burst into tears when her pleas didn't get any reaction.

"Alright, you get something." He reached into his small backpack and found an apple. Taking out a small knife too he cut it into small pieces and fed Armelle until she shook her head at an offered piece. He ate the rest himself before she could change her mind then looked out of the window again. The small girl snuggled closer to him and was out like light within a few minutes.

"We'll arrive in a few minutes." The coachman yelled. Armelle stirred, but continued to sleep. Inga changed seats and sat down next to Rhys. The boy leant against her taking a deep and unsteady breath. Inga put an arm around him and dragged him close to her.

"I'm so sorry Rhys." She whispered. Tears trickled down his cheeks and fell on Armelle's messed up mop of lightly curled hair. Sobs were threatening to escape, but he didn't want to wake her up, so he continued to cry without a sound.

The rest of the way passed in silence and soon they arrived in San Francisco. Rhys dried his tears and climbed out of the carriage. Inga stayed close behind him and took his hand firmly in hers.

"Thanks." He whispered.

Inga gave him a reassuring smile then asked the coachman about the whereabouts of an orphanage. He pointed down the road and wished them luck. After half a mile they arrived. Armelle was still fast asleep despite the noise of the city.

The orphanage was plain but clean. Rhys took a deep breath and freed his hand, then he stepped into the building.

"How can I help you my boy?" He heard a croaky but not unfriendly voice. He turned around and spotted an elderly woman sitting behind the desk. Before he could reply a maybe four year old boy ran into the room followed by a young man.

"Jonathan! Stop!"

The young child bumped into Rhys causing him nearly to fall to the ground. Jonathan fell roughly on the seat of his trousers and started to holler waking up Armelle in progress, who also started to cry. The young man picked the boy up and checked him gently.

"That's what happen if you run around without looking." He chided gently drying the child's tears gently with his sleeve. "Now stop crying, nothing happened." He headed out of the room again while rocking and patting the small child.

Rhys did the same with his sister while he walked over to the desk. "So what can I do for you boy?" The woman asked again.

"Ah…. Ah would like to give ya ma sister. She needs to stay somewhere until I'm old enough to take care of her." He replied.

"And where will you stay?"

"He will live with Samuel." Inga stepped in, "Ah was a friend of Rhys' mother." She explained at the woman's questioning look. "Samuel has given him some work. Nothing hard, just so he can earn some money, to have enough to start something when he's older."

"I see. Well I'm sure we'll find a nice home for your sister until you've come back." She gave Rhys a warm smile.

"Thank you Ma'am and here's the birth-certificate." He handed Armelle to Inga, then reached inside his backpack taking out two pieces of paper.

"Well that is unusual, we don't often get children with papers."

"Mah Father came from new Orleans ma'am. He reckoned it was important, cost a lot of money ta have her registered, legal. The second one is a copy of mine. Jist so ya now that we're belonging together." He added.

Inga stroked Armelle's back then looked down at Rhys. It would be the best. This was a good orphanage. If Armelle was lucky she would be adopted by a nice family.

"Richard!" The old woman suddenly called.

The young man from before appeared again. "Yes, Ma?"

"We've got a new one. Her name's Armelle." She turned to Rhys, "If it's alright Richard will take her to the other children now."

Rhys nodded. "Ah just want to give her one last hug." He said with hoarse voice. He turned to Inga who handed Armelle over to her older brother. He hugged her as hard as he dared and kissed her forehead. "Ah'll come back. Ah promise that Armelle. Ah promise."

Armelle wriggled and whined a bit feeling uncomfortable about being squished so hard. Then she was handed over to Richard, who settled her down with an experienced grip on his arm. She looked at him with wide eyes and her bottom lip started to quiver when she didn't recognize the man. Unconcerned, Richard tickled her belly, causing her to laugh then took out a small caramel of his pocket.

"Open wide."

Eager Armelle opened her mouth as wide as possible and Richard plopped the caramel into her mouth.

"Lhys." She mumbled with her mouth full and then turned to her brother.

"I see you've already fallen in love with him." He whispered then stroked her soft cheek one last time.

"I'll take her to the other children now." Richard said and turned around.

"Bye-bye!" Armelle waved to him with a wide grin, showing her small teeth. Taking a deep breath, Rhys forced a smile and waved back.

"Ah'm so sorry." He whispered and when the doors closed the tears started to stream down his face. He knew at latest in an hour she would start to cry, but right now the little girl was too distracted by all the new things around her. He turned around and left the building with Inga.

**End Flashback**

Rhys woke up and reached up to touch his face. Silent tears were trickling down his cheeks. "Ah'm so sorry Armelle. Ah should have stayed with ya."

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><p><strong>Not as long as the last one, but the next one will be longer, though it will take longer time to write it. I hope you enjoyed reading it.<strong>

**A shoutout to Gaben who beta-read this chapter and sorted out several mistakes.**

**As always reviews and constructive critizism are always much appreciated. So please press the button below and drop me a line. THANKS!**


	6. By Hook or by Crook

**The story so far: **Rhys Heavens, a young soldier from the Confederate, deserted and wants to find his little sister Armelle, whom he has put into an orphanage in San Francisco to keep her away from the war. Sara has told her friend Kylie about the soldier, but no one else knows about Rhys yet, except the doctor. Sara is getting closer to Rhys and has told him that she has been adopted. Rhys sincerely hopes that his little sister also has found such a nice family. In the night he again dreams of his past, but not about the war this time, but about his trip to San Francisco with Armelle, when he left her in an orphanage.

**By Hook or by Crook**

Ben was sitting in the red chair sipping on a cup of coffee while he was waiting for the rest of the family to come down. When he heard movements from upstairs, he placed the cup on the coffee table and headed upstairs. Sara needed to get up now, or she would be late for school.

_Not that she would mind to miss one day,_ he thought when he opened the door and spotted her lying still fast asleep in her bed. Next to her also in the bed was Black Knight. He ducked his head when he saw Ben frown at him. Careful not to wake up his mistress; the dog got down from the bed and then padded guiltily out of the room.

Ben tracked the dog out of the room and underneath his outstretched arm through the doorway. He would have to talk with a certain little miss about the rules of the house, but not now. He sat down on the edge of the bed, picked her up and sat her down on his lap. Sara didn't wake up. She simply tucked herself close into her grandpa's warm chest and continued to suck her thumb. Gently he removed her hand from her face and rubbed her back.

One of her eyes opened just the slightest bit and she peeked up at him. "Grandpa, I jist wanna… wanna….. one more….. minute….. please." Then she promptly started to snooze conformably again.

"Still that tired, Little One?" Ben teased and rubbed her arms and chest to get her awake again.

"Mmmmh." She grunted, unhappy about the rude awakening.

He picked her up and sat her down on her own feet. The child shivered when her bare feet made contact with the cold wooden floor, and the rest of her sleepiness disappeared. "Go and dress yourself Sara, breakfast is ready."

"Can't I stay at home today? I'm really tired." She pleaded and tried to give him her best puppy dog -eyes, but failed when a yawn interrupted her.

"No! Now go and fetch your dress. I'll help you with your hair afterwards."

Grumbling the small girl made her way over to her wardrobe and took out her clothes. When Ben was sure she would continue to dress herself and not just climb back into her bed when he was out of the door and headed downstairs. Hoss and Little Joe were already waiting at the dining table.

"Is she up?" Hoss asked, then added, "I'm starving."

"I'm sure a little bit of starving won't hurt you." Little Joe teased.

Before the playful banter could escalate, Sara came running down the stairs with a hairbrush in her hands. She made a beeline for her grandpa, handed him the brush then turned her back towards him. Ben started to brush out the worst knots, while she impatiently stepped from one foot to the other. Ben didn't give in to her impatience and simply continued brushing her hair, then collected it all into a ponytail. Sara turned around and gave him a quick hug, when he was finished.

Now that everyone had taken their seat around the table, Ben turned to Sara who was happily munching on a large slice of bread which was covered with a thick layer of honey. She looked up at him when she felt his gaze and gave him a broad smile.

"Sara, we need to talk about Black Knight."

Sara's smile faded when she recognized the firm tone in his voice. "Okay." She mumbled insecurely.

"He's not allowed to sleep in your bed, Little one. Once he has got used to it, it'll be very hard to get him back to his own place."

"But he's so fluffy and I really like having him next to me." Sara protested meekly.

"And he has left nearly a pound of hair in your bed too. So you will clean it up as soon as you're home from school."

"Okay." She went to jump off his lap, but he held her close.

Ben suspected Black Knights company was more than the child's adoration of her pet. He patted her gently on he head, then lifted her chin "If you have a bad dream, call out for me. I'll be there for you, but don't take Black Knight up to your room again."

"Yes grandpa." She gave him a quick peck to the cheek and returned to her place. Then she finished her breakfast and ran up to her room to fetch her schoolbooks.

**At the school**

Sara waved good-bye to her grandpa then turned around looking for her friend. Kylie was already sitting on a bench and had her face buried in a book. She didn't see her friend approaching her until she yelled, "Boo!" startling her so much that she jumped up and dropped the book to the ground.

"Hello to you, Sara." Kylie mocked a frown and put her hands on her hips.

Giggling Sara sat down on the bench and picked up the book handing it back to her friend as Kylie joined her.

"How's the man who came to yer house?" Kylie asked, brushing the last traces of dust from her book.

"I think he is better. He can already walk around with cr…. cru… I forgot the word. It's like a stick ya can use as help for walking." She explained.

"Ya mean crutches."

"Exactly, and he was even able to carry me when…" Sara broke off and blushed.

"When what? What happened?" "

"Maybe…I kind of got caught…"

"What trouble did you get yerself into now?" asked Kylie rolling her eyes.

" None, not really… well it was an accident…" Kylie gave her a disbelieving look at that answer, so the child added, "Okay, okay I got into trouble. I went into a corral to a new horse and I could have gotten trampled. In the end Uncle Joe trampled my backside." She finished with a huff.

Kylie giggled, then suddenly got serious again. "Can I see yer homework? I know yer exercises are a bit simpler but maybe we've still got the same problem somewhere. I'm not sure about problem number ten, I think I got that wrong and dad wasn't home, so he couldn't help me with my homework."

Sara froze. After all that had happened yesterday; she had completely forgotten the homework. Kylie saw the change of emotion on her friends face. "Is something wrong Sara?" She asked tentatively.

"I forgot ma homework and today dad is coming home again." She looked at her friend and her face lit up in a hopeful expression. "Can I copy your homework?"

"I'm not sure Sara. I want to help ya, but copy doesn't help you and besides we don't even have the same exercises. I'm sure if you explain everything to Miss Evans and yer dad, they will understand."

"Come on Kylie, please. You could solve it for me. Dad takes school really seriously and will get really disappointed if I've forgotten my homework. Miss Evans is sure to send a note home, no matter what. And then he'll ask all these questions and afore I know it … well he'll be right disappointed in me." She begged.

"But he would also get disappointed ifin he finds out that you copied my answers." Kylie replied evenly.

"Awww, come on Kylie; I thought ya were my friend."

That worked. Sara was truly Kylie's friend and friend like she had never had before. Oh, Kylie new that Sara was playing on her loyalty, not to mention her gifts to get out of trouble, but that's what friend's did for each other; by hook or by crook they helped when they could. Though, she wished Sara could be a little more upfront. Kylie softened and looked at Sara's sheet. "Okay Sara, but only because I don't want yer dad ta be disappointed or you ta get your butt busted, or grounded; stuck inside when we's could be playin'. But, this is the last time I'll be doin' it fer ya. And cut out that bunk about yer dad bein sooo disappointed, I ain't that addleheaded. It's only ma legs that don't work right."

Sara blushed, "Sorry Kylie, ya are really my bestest friend. Guess I'm just used ta havin ta weasel my way outta trouble."

"Yup, okay, but I don't know ifin ya noticed; ya tend not ta get away with that anymore." Kylie laughed and nudged her friend.

Sara waited eagerly with a pen ready in her hand. After twenty minutes Kylie had solved everything and Sara had written up every answer.

"Thanks." Sara felt relief filling her entire being.

Just then Lorraine Evans opened the door to the school. "Sara! Come in for a minute please." She called.

"I didn't do anything!" The girl said quickly, causing the teacher to laugh.

"I didn't accuse you of doing anything, Sara; now come. You can also come in Kylie if you want."

Still suspicious, Sara jumped off the bench and headed over to her teacher with Kylie tight on her heels. Lorraine shooed them inside and closed the door behind them. She beckoned Sara forwards to her desk and Kylie took a seat at her usual desk.

"Show me your homework, please." She held out her hand and the child hesitantly handed over the paper. Lorraine quickly scanned the answers and her eyes widened. "Did Adam help you with the homework?"

"No, Ma'am. Dad is up at the lumber camp. He's goin' to be chopping wood the rest of the week, grandpa says…"

Lorrain Evan's held up her hand and interrupted Sara's rant. "Did another one of your family help you?"

"No, Miss Evans." Sara replied with steady voice _and that was the truth_, she thought for herself.

"Remarkable. I've never seen a student make such quick progress. You seem to have a talent for numbers." She praised.

The girl turned pink with shame, but Lorraine mistook it with abashment. "It seems that you already have reached the level of your coevals."

"Huh? What does "coevals" mean Miss Evans?" Sara asked forgetting her embarrassment for a second.

"It means children of your age." Lorraine replied still surprised that her newest student had had the right answer for every math exercise she had given to her. She had wanted to test Sara's abilities in math. She should have a small talk with Adam after school and ask him if he had helped her. Maybe she hadn't told the truth, for today she would continue with the schedule she had worked out for Sara, but from tomorrow she would get the same exercises like the other children in the third grade, perhaps the fourth.

**Back at the Ponderosa**

Rhys sat upright in his bed and finished the last of his breakfast. Despite his protests, Hop Sing had insisted on that he should stay in the bed. Just as Rhys returned his tray to the bedside table, Ben and another man entered the room.

"How are you today, Mister Heavens?" The other man asked.

"I'm sorry sir, but I have no idea who you are." Rhys replied warily.

"Oh, yes I forgot. You weren't that well when I stitched you up; for the second time, I might add, young man. My name is Doctor Martin."

"He wants to have another look at your eye and your leg." Ben explained.

Rhys quickly nodded and carefully lifted his injured leg over the edge of the bed so he was sitting upright. Martin knelt down in front of him and inspected the bandage with sensitive fingers.

"Did it bleed yesterday?" He asked.

"No and it already feels much better. I can walk around with the crutches Hoss made for me."

"What? No, you shouldn't walk at all. Your leg needs rest until the muscle has healed more. If you walk around now you're risking that it will rip and then your muscle won't heal at all. You could end up with a permanent limp or at worse you won't ever be able to walk again."

"Well that explains yesterday's pain." Rhys shrugged.

"What did you do?" Martin asked with sharp voice.

"I carried Sara for a few yards. She was quite upset and didn't let go of me." He explained while rubbing the back of his head.

"Your muscle could have ripped apart young man. The wound isn't very broad but it's deep. If it rips completely into two, it… Look, Mr Heavens, the stab missed your bone and the main arteries; you're lucky that you're still alive, let alone be walking." The doctor ranted then knelt down in front of Rhys and unwrapped the bandage. The end of the bandage was stuck to the wound, but with a quick jerk Martin ripped it off, causing Rhys to breathe sharply. He prodded the edge of the wound with careful fingers, but didn't seem to find anything that concerned him. Relieved he then took a good look at the cavity, where Rhys' left eye ball had once been.

"The infection has already started to go. If you want you can cover it up again."

"Good." Rhys looked around for a piece of fabric and the doctor handed him a piece of bandage.

"Take this, it's clean." Patiently he waited until the young man had tied it around his head then continued, "Stay in bed for one more week, then you should be able to walk around with the crutches without risking anything."

"Thanks doc."

Martin simply nodded then took out a small bottle of his bag together with a small spoon. He filled it to the brink then handed it to Rhys. "Drink this. It will ease the pain and you will be able to sleep for longer periods. Rest will help the healing process."

The young soldier swallowed the liquid in one gulp and wrinkled up his face at the taste. Ben handed him a glass with water then helped him to lie down again. Rhys' eyelids were already drooping and within seconds he was fast asleep.

Ben turned towards Martin who was shaking his head.

"Ben I don't know what to do. If it weren't for you I would report him to the Union. There's a detail not far from here. He could be a spy or god knows what."

"Adam has talked with him and he's sure he isn't a spy. He's just a boy who wants to get away from the war." Ben replied calmly.

"He may be young, but that doesn't mean he couldn't be a spy. We don't know how he got these injuries for certain. Who knows, maybe he killed some poor guy who found him when he was on his way here."

"Martin." Ben put a hand on his shoulder. "Think about what you said. If he was a spy, then he most certainly wouldn't be wearing the uniform of the Confederates. He would be in civilian clothes or a union uniform. He would not have admitted he was a confederate soldier and he would not so be so scarred. If he was a spy, people would be too wary of him, they tend to be nicer to folk who are normal looking. He would draw too much attention."

Ben's argument made sense. Paul Martin sighed then wiped the sweat of his forehead. "Okay. I will keep quiet, but make sure that everyone here does the same. I'm sure your sons will do that."

Ben nodded. Like Paul he was certain the boys would keep their guest details a secret, but, Sara; what if Sara has already told someone about the boy? It would not look good for any of them; his family could easily be charged with harboring an enemy. He never wanted to take sides in this war, and truth be known, he sympathized with the union, but that didn't mean he would watch a boy no older than Joe seen hung for deserting a cause he truly did not understand or believe in. The boy had seen horrors and had the scares to prove it. Ben prayed that by hook or by crook he could keep them all safe.

**Virginia City in the school**

Sara sat at her desk frowning as she tried to read over an English exercise. She didn't understand everything. All the letters were confusing. Sighing she looked out of the window and steadied her head in her hands trying to stay awake until the lunch break.

"I wonder what Rhys is doing now?" She mumbled then looked back at the sheet in front of her.

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><p><strong>Sorry that it took me so long to update, but I have good reasons. The First: my laptop got stolen, along with a nearly finished new chapter for this story. The Second: On my laptop was also my final thesis, well not the finished one, but I had about the half of it written. The third one: In my backpack was the backup stick for my work and that one also got stolen. The whole backpack not only the stick.<strong>

**So I had to write everything a second time along with the chapter. But now it's finished and I hope you enjoyed reading it. The next update will also take a lot of time, because I've still got a lot to catch up.**


	7. Keeping Secrets

**Keeping secrets**

Sara glanced at Kylie's sheet and copied the next answer. The text was difficult and she didn't have the patience to read through it carefully. Deep inside she knew she would only getting more and more behind if she continued copying everything.

_Tomorrow,_she thought,_ tomorrow I'll do everything on my own._

Looking around, she spotted Miss Evans checking the time and then ringing the bell for the lunch break. Letting out a relieved sigh, she grabbed her lunch pail and grabbed Kylie's hand dragging her outside. She caught sight of a free bench right by the white washed fence and continued her way over to it.

Kylie tried to keep up with her."Hey! What's the hurry?" She complained limping after her friend as fast as possible.

Sara slumped down on the bench and let out a huge sigh. "Ahhh. Finally. Rest. I thought it would take forever."

"So you were just lazy and wanted to get out of school?" Kylie mocked.

Sara nodded truthfully. "I would rather be at home now playing with Rhys."

Kylie didn't reply. She sat down on the bench next to her friend. "Ifin ya could you would never come to school," she accused.

Sara shrugged. "It's jist so hard. It feels like I don't know anything." She unpacked her lunch and sunk her teeth into her sandwich. She didn't feel like talking about school right now. If her dad found out that she hadn't done her homework, he would probably start checking it every day. Kylie felt her friend's unease and became quiet too, eating her lunch in silence.

Both girls didn't notice William Talbot the drunkard of Virginia City lying in the dust, leaning against the fence which was surrounding the school boundary,, sleeping off his inebriated condition. When he heard the girl's chatting again he went to sit up and tell them to shut their noisy little mouths, but he remained quiet when he realized what they were talking about.

"I would really like to meet this mister Heavens." Kylie mumbled while munching on the last piece of her sandwich.

"He's really nice. Though he looked really scary in the beginning. He was in a battle or somethink. Yesterday he told me he's from the south and that he had a family there. I told him maybe grandpa could adopt him and then he would be one of my uncles. I can just imagine him scaring Garrett to death." She ended grinning. Kylie giggled when she imagined the picture of a troll chasing Garrett around in the town.

William got to his feet and leant over the fence close into Sara's ear slurring, "Hey girls! Can ya tell me some more about that man?"

Sara immediately jumped to her feet, when she felt and scented the bad breath of the man. Kylie also got to her feet and took a few steps away from the man in the dirty clothes. Sara took a hold of her friend's hand and squeezed it tightly, wanting to show Kylie that she would protect her if needed, but she also felt safer feeling her friends hand.

"Now, now no need to be afraid, littl' ladies. I jist wanted to know some more about this Heaven." William leaned heavily on the bench and tried to focus on the children in front of him.

"His name ain't Heaven, it's Rhys Heavens." Sara replied defiantly.

"And where's he from? Didn't ya say he's from the South? Was he a soldier?" He questioned impatiently, for a good story he could get many drinks. He was so eager with asking his questions that he didn't notice the tall man approach him from behind until a heavy hand fell on his shoulder.

"Mister Talbot. You ain't got any business around the school. So leave my daughter alone." Cormac growled.

Intimidated Will shrunk back."I meant no harm. I jist heard Little Miss Cartwright talk about a man from the south and wanted to know a little more about this story."

Sara watched with wide eyes when Kylie's father grabbed the man by the neck and dragged him away from the school yard.

"What do ya think he's goin' to do?" Sara asked curiously and somewhat nervous.

"I don't know, but maybe he hand him over to the sheriff. He ain't allowed near the school ya know."

But Cormac did none of this. Instead he reached into his pocket and handed William something, then grabbed him by the shoulder and said a few words. Visibly intimidated William ducked his head and shrunk away. Cormac stared after the man then turned towards Sara and Kylie again. When he started to head in their direction Sara started to feel some butterflies in the pit of her stomach. He looked angry and he was really intimidating with this stern look on his face.

"I think we better go inside again." Sara whispered and turned to go, but Kylie kept her friends hand in a firm grip.

"Sara! Kylie! Come here," ordered Cormac, when he had reached the fence. Obediently, Kylie headed towards her father dragging a reluctant Sara along after her. Cormac climbed over the fence and crouched down in front of the children, so they were at the same eye-level.

"Sara, Kylie. I don't want you to talk about your friend from the south when you're in Virgina city or around anyone but family. Is that clear?" He stated.

"Why?"Sara asked confused, "Doctor Martin knows him already and Rhys' is really nice. I bet ya would like him too."

Cormac had to smile at her sincere naivety, "Look Sara, there are men here in town who are very angry with the south and maybe they would take out their anger on your friend Rhys."

"But why would they do that?" Kylie piped up.

Cormac sighed. How could he explain this war to his child? "You know the Union is at war with the Confederates, don't you?"

Both children nodded.

"The Union is in the north and the Confederates are in the south. Many people in the north now think that all the people in the south are bad, and they in the south probably think the same of the people in the north. So if some men found out that a southerner is in your house, Sara your dad could get into trouble with the military, or even the law. Do you understand?"

"Yes, sir, but Rhys isn't bad. He's really nice, he simply doesn't look very good, but he can't help that, because it's like Kylie can't help for her leg and..." Cormac put a finger against her lips to interrupt her rambling.

"Good, so no more talking about this man in the city."

"Yes, sir!" They replied in unison.

"Now go back inside. It looks like Miss Evans is about to call you back in." He was right. A second later the bell rang and the children headed more or less reluctantly inside.

**Later that afternoon**

Sara stuffed her schoolbooks into her small saddlebags, then went outside slower than usual. Even Kylie was in front of her. The work she had to do seem to get more and more difficult with each day. She had only managed to keep up with the others during the afternoon, because Kylie had whispered the solutions to her exercises whenever she had time.

She pushed the nervous feeling away and ran up to Kylie's side, whispering a thank you into her ear, before escaping into freedom of the schoolyard.

At edge of the fence she spotted her grandpa. With a small squeal of joy she ran over to him and he scooped her up in his strong arms. She thanked him with a somewhat sloppy kiss to his cheek and grinned.

"How has your day been little one?"He asked tickling her belly with one hand.

"Stop that." She giggled slapping his hand away, then replied, "It was good, but a bit boring. We had to do a lot of reading in the morning and had to answer lots of questions, but I managed to finish it, so I don't have any reading homework."_Thanks to Kylie_, she added in her thoughts. "And in the afternoon we did math and then we had a quiz about American History. I answered two questions right." She said proudly puffing out her chest.

"Of how many?" Ben asked raising an eyebrow at her.

Sara looked crestfallen. "But grandpa I told ya it was a quiz. Miss Evans divided the class into two groups and then she asked us questions and the group who answered most of the questions won."

"So it wasn't an exam?"

"No, ya silly." She giggled and tapped his nose.

"Mister Cartwright?" Both of them looked up and spotted Miss Evans standing in front of them. "If you have a moment; I'd like to discuss a few things with you."

Ben sat Sara down on her own feet and eyed the young teacher. He hadn't had the time to talk with her yet, but Adam had described her as a young well educated woman.

"Of course Ma'am."

Miss Evan smiled and nodded. "Please follow me inside then."

However before they were able to take one step Cormac came over to them. "Mister Cartwright, Miss Evans." He greeted. "I would like to have a few words with you Ben, if you have the time?"

"Yes, but I'm afraid you have to wait for a few minutes.. Miss Evans here has already asked me in for a conversation."

"Oh, my apologizes. I'll wait here until you're finished. That way Kylie and Sara can spend some more time together."

"No, no. You can talk s now. I'll go and collect my things then join me when you have finished, Mister Cartwright." Lorraine stated and headed back into the school without even waiting for a response.

Ben turned towards Sara and fixed her with a firm glare. "Is there something I should know, before Miss Evans talks to me young lady?"

Sara shook her head firmly, offended that everyone seemed to think that she always got into trouble.

"Sara!" He prompted.

"No, sir." She quickly said.

Meanwhile Cormac watched the other children leaving side by side with their parents or alone if they were older.

"So what is it Cormac?" Ben questioned.

"I heard your little granddaughter talk about a man from the south. William Talbot heard it too." Ben eyes went wide and he was just about to say something when Cormac continued, "I told him to keep quiet and gave him five dollars. That will supply him with drink and food for about three days, I guess. He will also work for me tomorrow, carrying some stuff to my smithy. That way he'll earn some easy money and will most likely keep his mouth shut. Furthermore I told the girls to stop talking about the man."

"How... Thank you. I..."

Cormac raised a hand. "Mister Cartwright, I'm a friend of your family and will keep quiet, but I don't want to know anything which could get me into more trouble. Kylie has only me left." With that he turned around, took Kylie's hand in his and headed towards his house.

Ben turned to Sara and crouched down in front of her. "We will talk about this at home Sara." He stated with firm voice.

"Am I in trouble? Everyone looks mad and that's jist because I told them of Rhys. I don't wanna be in trouble again." The small girl looked as if she was close to tears.

"No, you're not in trouble little one. You couldn't have known that it wasn't good to talk about Rhys in school and we forgot to tell you." He put two fingers under her chin and tilted her head up, then kissed her forehead. "Go and wait in the buggy. I'll come as soon as I finished talking with Miss Evans."

He spun her around and sent her away with a gentle tap to her backside.

In the classroom Lorraine had already taken out the sheet with the math exercises and some other problems Sara had solved during the day. She looked at the letters and number, still amazed how quickly she had learned everything. The door creaked and she glanced up seeing Ben entering the room.

"Please sit down Mister Cartwright." She said offering a chair, then handed him the latest sheet with math-exercises. "This was Sara's latest homework. I wanted to test her progresses in math and had a short talk with her this morning. Sara said; her father, nor had anyone else of her family helped her with the homework. Is that true?"

"Yes, Adam is up at the lumber camp, but he will be back by Friday." He replied while checking every answer. "This is quite amazing, I dare to say. I remember that she was struggling to learn her ABC and her numbers only a few months ago."

"Yes, I thought so too, and I wanted to ask you if I could work out a new schedule for her, or if she seems to struggle with the homework tasks. Is she stressed by her schoolwork?"

"No, if Sara has a problem she calls her father or me for help. If we aren't available there's always Little Joe, but he doesn't have the patience to explain a lot things to her and if Hoss tries to help her they always end up doing something else. She has him wrapped around her little finger. But Hop Sing helps her too sometimes, and I don't know if he perhaps helped her with the homework. I'll ask him when I get home. If he did I'll write you a letter and send it with Sara, if he didn't I would be glad if you would work out a new schedule for her to extend her abilities."

"Thank you. I just wanted to discuss it with you and not make some rash decisions." She explained.

"It's alright. I'm grateful for this talk." He stood up.

"Have a nice evening then Mister Cartwright."

"You too. Good-bye Mister Evans." He put his hat back up and left the building filled with pride. It seemed as if little Sara was indeed a quick learner. At this rate she would end up one of the smartest students in the school.

* * *

><p><strong>Well I hope you enjoyed it. I know it wasn't particulary thrilling, but it belongs to the story. It's one of it's turning points as you probably noticed. So what will happen next?<strong>

**Would be really glad to read some reviews, so why don't you press the button down there and drop me a line :)**


	8. Breaking Bad Habits

**Breaking Bad Habits **

Sara was nervous. Maybe she'd been caught and Miss Evans was telling her grandpa about her cheating? She didn't know and it felt as if there was a heavy weight on her small shoulders. When her grandfather came out of school, he headed with large strides over to the buggy and climbed up.

As soon as he had taken a seat he picked her up, sat her down on his lap and she found herself caught in a tight hug.

"I'm very proud of you little one. Miss Evans told me of your excellent progresses." He praised and sat her down again. Sara grinned up at him, glad that her little secret hadn't come out, but her conscience weighed heavy and a small voice in her head whispered,_ "You should own up!"_

She pushed it away and snuggled deeper into her grandfather's embrace. After yesterday she didn't want to be in trouble again. The sting had since long faded away, but the memory of her latest spanking was still fresh in her mind. Being spoiled for once was a good change, even if it was undeserved.

Ben clicked his tongue and the horses started to pull the wagon out of town.

"Can I take the reigns, grandpa?" Sara asked once they were out of town.

Without answering Ben picked her up and sat her down on his lap handing her the reigns. Eager to make a good job of it, Sara stayed alert until the wagon rolled into the yard of the Ponderosa.

"Look there, Sara." Ben said. The girl looked into the direction in which he was pointing and spotted Little Joe sitting on the back of Ace. The colt was hopping and bucking, but the young man kept his balance and soon the horse got tired of trying to get the unwelcome weight of his back.

The horse was still prancing around nervously, but Little Joe could at least now lead his head. All of sudden it stopped, flicked its ears back, and then took a mighty jump; once again trying to buck off the rider. Sara watched her uncle's struggles with wide eyes. It seemed as if he was glued to the saddle.

Thankfully the horse was already tired and stopped again; standing still and heavily panting close to the corral. Careful of the colt's sensitive mouth, Little Joe tightened his grip around the reigns and walked the horse a few meters along the side of the corral. Spotting his little niece and his father he raised one arm and waved to them a proud grin on his face. The young colt immediately sensed the distraction of his rider. He reared up, nearly causing little Joe to fall in the dust. His quick reflexes saved him from such a fate though.

"Hear Now!" Joe growled, dropping the pitch in his voice. He again pulled on the bit and turned the horse around in a circle, then brought it to a halt. Using the same tone in his voice, he demanded, "here… Stand Up!" the colt continued to fight Joe with his head, but before he could shuffle backwards, Joe again took hold of the bit, and turned the horses head sideways, then kicked him forward, forcing the horse complete another circle. He continued to do this, each time taking a wider arc until they ended up in the centre of the corral again, where he reversed the circle. After a couple of wheels the horse was obeying Joe's instructions.

After he had regained control over Ace again, Joe walked him over to the corral and dismounted. "He's broken, but needs polish. I just don't want to harden his mouth." As if on cue Ace tried to stamp on little Joe's foot but he quickly took a step backwards. "And he has no manners at all." He growled, more at the horse than towards his father and niece. Sara giggled at that comment. With a mock-frown Little Joe jumped over the fence and headed towards Sara. She squealed and wanted to run away, but Ben kept her in place until he reached them.

Little Joe grabbed her by the waist and hoisted her over his shoulder. "I'm sure you would have enjoyed watching me landing butt first in the dust." He teased and tickled her sides.

She nodded avidly while trying to slap his hands away. "Stop it!" She squealed.

He did as requested and sat her down on her own feet again, however he couldn't resist on giving her ponytail a soft tug.

"HEY! Stop that you get it all messy!" She complained.

Little Joe simply laughed and tapped her nose. "Once he's properly trained, you and I will take a ride to the pond, okay?"

Sara nodded enthusiastically, "YAY! We can have a picnic up there and maybe Kylie and her daddy can come too. And of course dad has to come and grandpa and Hoss and Rhys. We could ride ahead and swim. Then the others could come too." She rambled on.

"You've got already everything planned, huh?" Little Joe asked teasingly.

"Yup!" She replied proudly puffing her chest out then added, "Can you play with me later, Uncle Joe?"

"Not before you've finished all your chores and homework, Sara." Ben stated firmly.

"But, I jist have to water the horses, feed the chickens and collect the eggs. And I ain't got much homework; only some math."

"I think you forgot something."

Sara pondered on that for a few seconds, but then shook her head, "Nope. I don't think so."

"You're bed." Ben reminded.

The girls face fell, "But that will take forever. Can't I do that tomorrow?"

"No!"

"But….."

"Sara, the answer was, No. This is the punishment for letting Black Knight sleep in your bed. You need to strip it down, brush any hairs from the mattress and remake it with clean linen that Hop sing has for you. Now get started."

"Meanie." She huffed under her breath, then made her way grumbling and muttering over to the house. She only wanted to drive her worries away with playing and now she had to do all the chores.

Ben looked after her as she disappeared into the house. He decided to let the attitude slide. She was probably just tired from school and had thought she would be able to play as soon she got home.

"That's not like you, pa." Little Joe said looking after Sara, "and not like her either. Something's on her mind, but I can't tell what."

"What do you mean, that's not like me?" Ben asked.

"Well I clearly remember some times when you sent me away to do some unfavourable chore. When I was muttering or grumbling you would say: Everyone do their chores without complaining and I expect the same from you." He said imitating his father's deep voice. "And I clearly remember your warning smack then too and then you always added: Now get working."

"You tested my patience a lot when you were little and still do it. Remember the fair…."

"Alright I think I better continue my work." Little Joe interrupted and headed over to the barn.

Grinning, knowing that he had stumped his youngest; he took the horses and buggy and followed Joe into the barn.

**Later that evening at the Ponderosa**

Angrily Sara attacked her blanket with brush and rag. The hairs seemed to be glued to her bed. They simply didn't get out. This was already the second attempt she was doing it. Her grandpa hadn't been satisfied when she had announced she had been finished. He had come up and checked her work, then started to point out spots she had missed.

She ran the brush over the blanket again and sighed. This had to be enough. With a deep drawn sigh she lay down in the bed and stretched herself. Hop Sing could surely do the rest tomorrow. A soft knock on the door interrupted her thoughts and she looked up. Her grandpa had entered the room and looked at her with a raised eyebrow. Immediately she felt a wave of guilt hitting her conscience and she sat up quickly.

"Finished?" He asked.

"Yep!" She replied trying to sound self-confident, but failed when she wasn't able to meet his gaze.

"Then let me have a look." He came over and picked her up. Settling her on one arm he inspected her work. There were still several hairs stuck to the bedspread. "What do you think?" He prompted.

"Uhm…Good?"

"Was that a question or an answer?" He asked with a small smile playing on his lips. Sara didn't see it. She was looking down and played with a button on his shirt. He changed her grip on her so she had to look at her bed or turn her head on an uncomfortable angle. "Well?"

"I think there's still too much hair left." She murmured barely audible.

"I think so too, but I know you're tired and had a long day, so instead of cleaning your bed you'll help Hop Sing a bit with the laundry tomorrow so you see how much work he has to do to keep our clothes and beds clean. Now you've already gotten a taste of how hard it is to get dog hair out of a woollen blanket. I want you to learn to appreciate what he does for us. Do you understand me, little one?"

As an answer Sara twisted and squirmed in his hold until she could hide her face in his shoulder. Gently but firmly he released himself out of her grip and sat her down on the bed, then put his hand under her chin and tilted her chin up.

"Sara?"

"Yes, grandpa." She whispered. Her eyes were filled with tears and Ben was no longer able to remain firm with the child. With a sigh he sat down on the bed and put an arm around her. She snuggled close to him resting her head on his chest.

"Dinner is ready, come now, or good food gets cold." They heard Hop Sing call.

"Come. I think it's better we go down, or we both will be in trouble with Hop Sing." Ben chuckled and tweaked her playfully in her belly. Sara giggled and scrubbed her eyes, happy that everything was alright again. Ben sat her down on her feet then nudged her towards the door. He got to his feet and followed her out. In the corridor the pair spotted Rhys who was leaning against the stairs railing looking down into the big room.

"I thought the doctor told you to stay in bed, Rhys?" Ben said, frowning at the young man.

Rhys shrugged his shoulders and glanced over at him. "Ah can't lay still for such a long time, Mister Cartwright. Too much energy. Ah would be pleased if Ah could help ya with some chores instead of eating and sleeping all the time."

"The doctor's orders were quite clear. Go back to bed and I'll think of your offer in about two days." The firm voice of the older man, made Rhys grin. He sounded very much like his stepfather. Instead of replying he straightened his back and turned around.

"I take you by your word, Mister Cartwright." He grinned and hobbled back into the room with his crutches.

"Have to tell Hop Sing to take his crutches away. The young fool will run around and get even more injured." Ben grumbled and swatted Sara gently on her backside to get her moving again. The girl scuttled when she felt her grandpa's hand and ran down the stairs, then made a beeline towards her uncle Hoss who was sitting in the red chair in front of the fire. Without asking she scrambled up in his lap and made herself comfortable.

"Are you finished with yer bed lambkin?" He asked rubbing her back.

She nodded and snuggled deeper into his embrace. "Do ya know when daddy will be home?"

"In about two or three days. I was up at the camp today, bringing them some supplies ya know. They hadn't planned on the job taking so much time. But you know that yer daddy always tends to make plans for everything, don't ya?" He teased.

Sara nodded. Hoss suddenly got to his feet swinging the small child around and up on his shoulder causing her to squeal loudly. Chuckling he sat her down on a chair then took a seat next to her. Hop Sing dished up the last of the dinner and then took a tray up to Rhys' room.

After dinner Sara helped with the dishes. As she went to leave the kitchen she was held back by Hop Sing who held up a small jar. "Give this to your honourable grandfather, little girl." He said then shooed her out of the kitchen. Curious about the content of the small jar Sara stopped after a few steps and opened it. Inside was something that looked like a lotion. Shrugging she raised it to her nose and took a good sniff. The acerb and acrid smell immediately made her sneeze nearly causing her to drop the jar to the ground. Quickly she put the cap back on and ran to her grandfather who had taken up residence in the blue chair. Black Knight was lying at his feet snoring loudly.

"Grandpa, Hop Sing told me to give ya this." She said and handed him the jar.

"Ah good." Then he glanced at his pocket watch and gave his little granddaughter a meaningful look.

"I know bedtime." She huffed, but then again threw a quick look at the small jar and the curiosity got the better of her, "What's that for grandpa?"

"For you."

"WHAT? But it smells awful and I ain't got any rash anywhere." She added panicking when she remembered the smell of the lotion Hop Sing had made for her when she had been sick.

Ben grinned, "No, little one. It's for your thumbs."

"My thumbs? It ain't nothing wrong with them." She protested, but eyed them warily as if they could fall off any second.

"Let me finish then I can explain everything to you."

Sara nodded and looked up at him with big eyes.

"Alright you know you're too old to suck your thumb don't you?"

The small girl blushed but nodded again.

"So this will help you to break of the habit. We'll put it on both of your thumbs before you go to sleep and when try sucking your thumbs you'll have a nasty taste in your mouth and will immediately remove it." He leant closer to her and whispered, "And I can tell you, you aren't the only one who has this small problem. Little Joe never wanted to stop either when he was your age. Hop Sing then came up with the idea of the lotion. It helped your Uncle so there's a good chance it will help you too, little one."

"Okay." She held out her hands towards him.

"Not yet. First you have to get ready for bed."

Sara crouched down, gave Black Knight a good-night-kiss then ran upstairs to her room. Once in her room she quickly changed into a nightgown then sat down on the bed waiting for her grandfather. After a few minutes he came into the room with the jar in one hand and large glass of water in the other.

"What's the water for?"

"For you. You will want to rinse your mouth once you've tasted this."

"Don't be silly, I won't eat it grandpa." Sara giggled.

"We'll see. Now give me your hands." Obediently the girl held up her hands allowing Ben to put a generous portion of the cream on her thumbs.

**Next morning**

Someone softly shook her shoulder. Tired Sara opened one eye and glared up at whoever dared to disturb her. She stared straight up into Ben's eyes.

"Go away!" She grizzled.

"I take that as a: I didn't sleep good this night my beloved grandfather." Ben quipped and picked her up.

Sara grunted unhappy and tried to squirm out of his grip, but Ben held firm and whether she wanted or not she was sat down on his lap.

"I woke up over a hundred times last night, cause of that damn lotion. It tastes disgusting. What did ya put in there? Now let me go, I wanna get back into bed."

"Hey! Don't be rude young lady." Ben admonished, though he felt for her. The glass of water on her night table was as dry as a desert. Obviously she had woken up several times from the taste.

"Sorry grandpa. I'm jist so darn tired." She mumbled and tucked herself close into his chest. Promptly she fell asleep and her thumb wandered up to her mouth. Ben waited; interested in how her reaction would be once it reached her mouth. He didn't have to wait for long. As soon as it went inside her mouth her eyes went wide open. The thumb came out faster than Hoss could wolf down flapjacks.

"Eeewh!" She stuck out her tongue and scrubbed it vividly with her sleeve. Ben couldn't help but laugh at the scene. She slapped him on the chest with her free hand and gave him an angry glare.

"Alright. Come now. It'll only be like this for a few nights, then you will have stopped with the habit." He comforted her, while rubbing her back, then added, "I'll go and fetch you a big glass full of water and meanwhile you get yourself dressed. I'm sure you don't want you to have that taste in your mouth for the rest of the day, do you?"

Sara huffed and grumbled, "It's all yer fault."

"Watch it, young lady. Sara, I'm just trying to help you." Ben warned and stood her up adding one firm swat to her little backside.

"Ow!"

"You're Lucky; that's for saying damn and the go away, so no more cussing or grumpy talk."

"Okay, sorry. But the taste's really nasty. Ya should try it too before you go swatting my backside."

"I guess I get to pass on that, because I'm not sucking my thumb."

"How do ya know? Maybe you're doing it when you're asleep, like me?" Sara proposed a mischievous grin on her face.

"Nope, I'm sure. Now stop dawdling and get dressed." He spun her around and nudged her towards the wardrobe. "You've got the whole day in front of you.

"Great, and a whole lot of chores ta boot. Breaking bad habits is hard work."

"That they are, Sara, perhaps now you'll think twice about having Black Knight in your bed, or sucking your thumb."

"Yes sir, only could we jist break one bad habit atta time, besides I ain't got much more and I'm still only eight."

Ben belly laughed, as he handed her a clean dress and blouse.

"At least I only have a half day of school and can get out of this dress by midday!"

"Yep, but remember, you've still got the washing to look forward too."

"Awww! Ya know you don't hafta remind me."

* * *

><p><strong>So that was it for today. Another chapter finished and that in less than a month, wow! A big HURRAY for gaben who betaed this chapter for me!<strong>

**Ps. I wanted to thank you again for reviewing. I got over thirteen reviews for the last chapter. THANK YOU GUYS!**

**Pps. Of course I would be happy if it could continue like this ;)**


	9. Cheating

**Cheating**

Sara quickly slipped the dress over her head then turned towards her grandfather. "No bonnet, okay?" She asked pleadingly.

Ben sighed and ruffled her hair, "Alright, no bonnet, but you get a ribbon, to keep your ponytail in place."

"Eeeew!"

Chuckling he picked up the brush and sat down on the bed. "Come now and the ribbon is not up to discussion." He quickly added when the child opened her mouth ready to object. Sara huffed but came over to him. Ben turned her around and secured her between his knees so her impatient wiggling wouldn't interfere with the task of brushing her hair.

"Lemme go!" She tried to push herself away.

"Nope. If I do that, you'll wiggle around and it will take forever to finish." He replied and ran the brush through her hair. With a small pout, Sara stopped her squirming; trying to hold still until her grandfather was finished. She didn't like it to be kept in place like that. After a few minutes he gathered her hair into a ponytail and secured it in place with the loathed ribbon.

"Now you look as cute as a button." He praised and kissed her nose. The small girl couldn't help but feel proud of the compliment and puffed her chest out. "Come breakfast is ready, and then it's off to school for you." He spun her around and added a gentle pat to her bottom as she ran out of her room.

After breakfast Ben took Sara to the barn and hoisted her up into the buggy. He had some business in town, as it was time to go through all the accounts with his banker. He could do that while Sara was in school and the drive her home directly after he was finished, so she could help Hop Sing with the laundry.

"Come now grandpa." Sara urged. She had the schoolbooks clutched to her chest and wiggled around impatiently. The small girl was nervous. If they didn't get going soon, she wouldn't be able to copy her friend's homework before Miss Evan's called the children in. She tried to push those thoughts away, but they stubbornly refused to leave her mind.

Fortunately Ben didn't leave her much more time to worry. A minute later he was up in the buggy and the horse pulled it towards Virginia City.

Once they arrived they were still twenty minutes early. Sara let out a relieved sigh and looked around, but Kylie was nowhere to be seen.

"Alright. This is the end of the trip for you Little One." Ben picked her up and sat her down on his lap, for one last hug and kiss, which the child happily returned.

"Remember; If I'm not here by the time the school has ended, ask Miss Evans if she has time to take you over to the bank. I don't want you wander around in the town alone."

"Okay! But what have ya to do in the bank anyway. You ain't gonna rob it are ya?" She asked grinning.

Ben laughed and gave her ponytail a soft tug. "No, I'm not going to rob the bank. I will go through our budget with the banker."

"Uh-uh." Sara nodded absent minded, still scanning the school-area for her friend.

"I don't think you've been listening to me little lady." Ben reprimanded her gently.

"I did. You're going to the bank cause of some bank-thingies." She protested.

"That pretty much hits the nail on the head," chuckled Ben, "But remember…"

"Ask Miss Evans ifin she can take me over to the bank to see ya if you ain't at the school when it's finished." Sara finished, proud that she remembered what he had said.

"Good girl." Ben praised and kissed her forehead. Sara jumped down from the buggy and ran over to schoolyard. She only turned around once to wave good-bye to her grandfather. Ben sighed then clicked his tongue and the horses pulled the buggy further down the road.

Sara had sat down outside the school building on a bench and was swinging her legs nervously. Kylie wasn't there yet and Sara still had to copy her friend's homework otherwise Miss Evans would find out everything and then she would be in BIG trouble. The nagging feeling of her conscience came back urging her to tell her teacher everything. She knew it couldn't continue to do well in her studies forever, but right now all she was concerned with was being able to copy Kylie's homework.

She was lucky. Sara could see Kylie step out of her house and head towards school. Sara jumped to her feet and ran over to her friend.

"Hi!" She panted once she reached her.

"Why are ya hurrying?"

"Because… I wasn't able to do my homework… and…. meybe I thought could copy yours?" She asked pleadingly.

"Why couldn't you do it?"

"It was too hard… Now please, show yer homework to me." Sara said eyeing Kylie's schoolbooks.

"Sara… When you're cheating then you're only cheating and foolin yerself, that's what my daddy always says. Ya should jist own up."

"Grandpa's gonna spank me, if I tell him!" Sara protested, then quickly lowered her voice remembering that her grandfather was still in town.

"I told ya I would only help you once." Kylie replied with a somewhat unsteady voice. This was the first time she didn't do what her friend wanted. She had often played along ,because she didn't want to disappoint her new friend and because her pranks had sounded like fun. Well at least until she was put across her father's knees and got her backside tanned.

"But you're my friend and friends are supposed to help each other." Sara urged.

"I…." Kylie closed her mouth and looked over at her friend, who was looking pleadingly at her. But then she bit her tongue and shook her head. She turned her head away from Sara and hurried towards the school afraid the she might change her mind.

"Stop being stupid Kylie. Only one more time." Sara pleaded and ran after her. "I promise it'll be the last time you'll help me with my homework."

"I ain't helping you. I let you copy my work." Kylie clarified tersely, then added, "And I'm not stupid, it's you who can't do yer homework, so it's you who is stupid."

Feeling deeply hurt Sara huffed and went over to the bench. She picked up her schoolbooks and pressed them tightly to her chest. Surprised by that reaction Kylie sat down next to her friend wanting to explain everything to her.

"Sara, I told ya….."

"I'm gonna get spanked because of you. I ain't talking to ya anymore." She sniffed stood up and headed over to the next bench.

"But Sara….. I'm sorry, but it's wrong to cheat." Kylie walked after her friend, now clearly afraid. What if Sara didn't want to be her friend anymore? "Look I want to help, but daddy says that helping someone cheat is nearly as bad as cheating yourself and I help you cheat…"

Sara turned her back towards her, when Kylie sat down next to her. "Please don't be mad Sara. I….."

"I jist want ya to help me one more time."

"Well…" Kylie broke off and fidgeted nervously. She felt really bad for not helping her friend.

"Please!" Sara begged and gave her friend her best puppy-eyes.

"Okay, but this is really the last time, Sara." She bargained.

"Oh thank you! Thank you, thank you…" Sara flung her arms around her friend and hugged her tightly. Kylie grinned and hugged her back, glad that their argument was over. She took out her homework and handed it to Sara, who quickly scribbled down all of her answers on her own sheet.

Just as she had handed back her sheet to her friend Miss Evans appeared in the door to call them in. Very happy that she had managed to convince her friend, Sara headed into the classroom and waited for the lesson to start.

As the rest of the class came in Miss Evans gathered a bundle of papers in her hands and waited patiently in front of her desk until all the children had taken their places and stopped their chattering.

"Quiet please!" She ordered, then took a step forward and held up the papers. "Today we're going to write a small math exam after I've collected your homework."

Everyone groaned at that announcement, but the pupils took out their pencils and waited to get their test paper. Sara sat stiffly in her chair, staring straight ahead. She had never had a test yet, except the entrance test which had been to test her abilities in the different subjects. She felt a wave of anxiety flood through her body as the sheet was placed in front of her and Miss Evans took her homework. Kylie however, picked up her pen and immediately started to scribble away on her test. Sara slowly picked up her pen and looked at the first problem.  
><em>What did Kylie always do? And how had Miss Evans explained it? The point between the two numbers meant it was a multi….. multplacation. That means I hafta multplay the numbers.<br>6 __**· **__7 = ….,_ Sara pondered for a few seconds then glanced over at Kylie's sheet.

"42." She mumbled and wrote the number. The next one was a simple division she could solve on her own, but the next one was difficult again. "73 – 49….. Thaaaaat's 36."

"No, wrong." Kylie suddenly whispered. "It's…"

"Sara! Kylie! No chatting during the test. Sara you move up to the desk in the front, please." Miss Evans said sharply giving both of them a disapproving glare.

"But…."

"No, buts Sara… Now!"

Close to tears, Sara stood up and headed over to the desk. Slowly she lowered herself into the chair and stared at the paper. _Kylie had said 36 is wrong. So what was it then?_

She didn't realized how fast time was passing by until Lorraine called, "Ten more minutes, then the exam will be over."

Sara panicked. She had just solved two out of twenty! Quickly she scribbled a number then went down to the next simply guessing all the answers; she had no idea what number could be right and what would be wrong.

"Time's up! Put down your pens!"

Sara let out a relieved sigh. She had written a number behind every exercise. Maybe she was lucky and all of them were right. She was lucky usually. Lorraine collected the test along with the homework, then set the children to continue working on their reading exercises.

**Later that afternoon; a few minutes before the end of school.**

Sara glanced up at Miss Evans to see if the frown had disappeared. Soon after her teacher had started to give the math-exams a quick check the frown had appeared and she had put one of the sheets aside. The small girl wasn't able to concentrate; she continually looked over at her teacher to see if the frown was directed at her.

Lorraine put the last sheet down then stood up and positioned herself in front of her desk crossing her arms in the process. She checked her watch one more time then straightened her back.

"Alright school's finished for today and I can already tell you that most of you have done a very good job on their exam. You are dismissed. " She stated then headed over to Sara who was busy with gathering her things. She had a hopeful expression on her face, but Lorraine could also see that she was nervous and tense.

"Sara, I want to have a quick chat with you about your exam." She said gently.

Sara looked up and her expression fell. "Okay." She mumbled and got to her feet.

"I'm waiting outside." Kylie said already glowering with pride. Unlike her friend she had a very good feeling about the test. Happy she went out of the schoolroom to tell her father all about the day at school.

Once all the children were out of the room, Lorraine closed the door. Then went behind her desk and sat down. Picking up the paper she had sorted out she held it in front of Sara.

"Sara… Do you think the test went good for you?"

"Dunno." She whispered and looked down at her shoes nervously playing with a loose thread on her dress.

"Sara, look at me!" The girl obediently raised her gaze. "You didn't do well on this Exam at all. In fact you have only three correct answers out of twenty. The first two and another problem were solved. That's an E- if not an F. So what I want to know now is what went wrong." She asked with gentle voice, though she had a very good idea about the reason behind this result might be.

Sara kept quiet, only her nervous fiddling with the thread became faster.

"Sara Cartwright! I expect an answer from you." Lorraine reminded this time with a firmer voice after a few seconds of silence.

"Dunno."

"That's not a proper answer. Unless you want a letter sent home in addition to this test I suggest you to speak up now." She stated firmly.

Tears filled Sara's eyes and she started to cry. "I'm jist stupid. I don't understand nuffin."

Lorraine stood up just as someone knocked on the door. Stroking the child's head soothingly she called, "Come in."

The door opened and revealed a very dusty Adam. "Good afternoon Lorraine." He greeted and took of his hat.

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><p><strong>Okay, that's it for now. But I hope I'll be able to update again soon.<strong>

**Thanks to the guests and all the members of this site who reviewed my story. I hope you continue with it ;)**

**Ps. I'm sorry that it took me so long to update but real life has gotten really busy for me.**


	10. Lies and Remorse

**A small Warning: This chapter contains some violence. Just so you know it, but nothing too brutal.**

**An announcment: A big hurray for LouAnnPetersen who was the HUNDREDTH REVIEWER!**

**And annother hurray for gaben who corrected this chapter.**

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><p><strong>Lies and Remorse<strong>

Sara spotted her father in the doorframe with a raised eyebrow. Then her emotions getting the better of her; a mixture of fear and shame, she made a beeline for him and wrapped her arms around his legs sobbing into his stomach.

Adam bent down so they were at the same eye level and she immediately tried to snuggle close to him. He first tried to keep her at a distance to talk to her, but once he realized she wouldn't be able to speak soon he opened his arms. Sara used the chance and wrapped her arms around his neck. He supported her behind with one arm when she wrapped her legs around his waist and stood up steading her with a hand on her back.

"What has happened?" Adam asked with a small sigh. He hadn't expected to meet his daughter crying in the classroom.

Lorraine Evans really felt for the child, but she was doing to Sara no good, if she let child's deception go on. "I think Sara has been cheating."

Adam stiffened, ready to challenge the teacher, regarding the bluntness of her statement.

"Please Mr Cartwright let me finish. Yes it is not a nice word, but there few synonyms that would clearly define what Sara' has been doing. Her homework has always been a hundred percent correct, but in today's exam she had only three correct answers out of twenty. However, I don't know if she copied the first two answers as well." Adam nodded while he still rubbed Sara's back. "She needs to calm down a bit, before we can talk to her." Adam said and turned his attention to the crying bundle in his arms. "Hush sweetheart. We're going to solve this together."

The reassuring voice and the rocking movements eventually reduced her crying to sporadic sniffling. Adam gently but firmly released himself out of her grip and sat her down on the ground.

"Sara would like to explain what Mrs Evans is talking about?"

"I…. Kylie helped me with the homework." She mumbled softly.

What do you mean; help?"

"Well… uh… She helped me solve the problems, daddy!" Sara explained, squirming under his stern gaze.

"Did she solve the problems and then you wrote up her answers?" He suggested while lifting her chin and tilting her head up, so she had to look at him.

"Uhm… yes sir." She admitted, then added "But I tried to help her! That's the truth!"

"Did she "help" you with the test today, also?"

"No, I jist copied the first answer. I solved the rest on my own." Sara objected meekly, "That's the truth daddy, honest." She insisted when she saw the frown deepen on her father's face.

"I believe you. But, how long has Kylie been helping you with your school work?"

"Sinceistarted." She mumbled barely audible and running the words together.

"Speak up!" Adam reprimanded, slowly losing his patience with her. He had expected her to run happy out of the school to meet him, not finding out she had gotten in such a mess of trouble.

"Since I started, but…"

Adam bent down and picked her up. Sara let out a surprised squeal and reached with both hands back to protect her behind. However, she misjudged her father's intentions. She was sat down on a desk top, then her father trapped her in with one arm placed on each side of her.

"Now I want you to listen good, young lady. Kylie did help you cheat at a test and that's a very naughty thing to do. You have also cheated with your school work, since you started, and look where it brought you. You're nearly as far behind as your peers as you were before. And to top of it I'm sure you've lied to me and you're Grandfather on several occasions about your homework, haven't you?"

"Yes." Sara had started to cry again.

"Why did you do such a thing?"

"It's… jist because I'm stupid and now you're mad because of the F." After that the child started to cry in earnest again. With a small sigh, Adam picked her up again and sat down on the table.

"Hey, I don't want to hear you saying such a thing. You're not stupid. You're a very bright little girl. You learned you ABC and the numbers in two months."

"I…. I…. I can't solve stuff Kylie can solve. And I got an F too." She sobbed and buried her face in his shirt. Adam gently stroked the back of her head and looked over to Lorraine. She was standing at his side looking down at the child with a sympathetic smile on her lips.

"Sara." She said gently. "You've learnt to read and do maths faster than any student I've ever met before, but you're still behind your classmates, because you didn't grow up in a home like them. I'm sure you have a lot of other skills, which were essential for your survival. Do you remember that incident with the snake in Garrett's desk?"

Adam frowned. What was she up to? He didn't want her to encourage his girl to pull another prank like this. However, he hoped that she was about to make a good point, so he stayed quiet.  
>Sara calmed down somewhat and turned her head towards her teacher.<p>

"Yes." She mumbled meekly.

"That day you told me the snake wasn't poison, because you had eaten one of them. How many children do you think would have known that?"

"I dunno."

"I can tell you. No one would have known that. Even I didn't know that it wasn't poisonous. So you even taught me something that day." She added, coaxing out a teary eyed smile from the girl.

"For real?"

"Yep! And I'm sure you know a lot of other things that the other children don't know."

"I can shoot. I bet no one of the other kids can do that and I'm really good at stealing too." Sara was getting excited by now. "And… and… I can find food in garbage. Some other kid on the street told me that." Then she got quiet and tucked herself closer to her father. Adam gave her a tight squeeze. Sara rarely talked about what she had done in her past. He respected that and accepted her as she was. He was sure she would talk about it when she was ready.

"There you are. You have many talents that other children don't have. That tells me that you are very smart, and that you will learn all the things the other children have already learnt, but it will take time. I'm also not sure if your father would be happy if he found you playing with a gun or stealing sweets from a store." She added winking at her student.

Sara smiled back, but it quickly turned into a pout, "Yep, he said he would spank me if I would touch a gun ever again and I'm sure he wouldn't be happy ifin I was stealin'. He's really bossy sometimes Miss Evans."

Lorraine giggled when she saw Adam's indignant expression. Named person lifted Sara off his lap and added a smack to her little bottom. The girl let out a small yelp and reached back to protect her behind in case any further attacks were planned.

"Back to the point now." Adam declared, "Sara, I also want to clarify that I'm not angry at you for getting a bad mark, nor will I ever be. I'm disappointed, because you cheated and lied, but I will never be disappointed if you try your best in a test, no matter what the result of it is."

"Okay, daddy."

"Then there's just one last thing. When did Kylie start to solve all of your homework? Because I can clearly remember that you have asked me for help a lot of times."

"Uhm…" Sara squirmed uncomfortably, when she spotted that the frown had reappeared on her daddy's face she quickly rambled on, "Two or three days ago daddy, just when you went up to the lumber camp."

"Hmm, I don't think your grandpa is going to be happy about that, do you?"

"No; s'ppose not."

"I know that he will not be happy about it, little lady and I think I will leave your punishment up to him." He continued quickly when Sara opened her mouth to protest, "Miss Evans? May I ask you for a favour?"

"Sure."

"Would you mind giving Sara private lessons after school until she has caught up with the other students?"

"Depends; which day would you have in mind, Mr Cartwright?"

"The day you have the most time available."

"In that case; Wednesday."

"Perfect!" Adam clapped his hands, then hesitated for a few seconds. There was another thing he wanted to ask her, but he wasn't sure how to formulate it. "Then there's just one more thing…" He felt a slight blush appear on his cheeks and felt suddenly very nervous. "Would you like to accompany me to this Saturday's Dance?"

Lorraine felt her heart flutter, then blushed into a deep red feeling like a complete fool. "It would be my pleasure, Mr Cartwright."

"Adam, call me Adam…Lorraine."

"Yes very well Adam, but now you have to go. I have…. I have a lot of tests to correct." She said and shooed them out trying to hide her red cheeks.

Adam however didn't miss her blush and had to stifle a chuckle which threatened to escape. Sara had watched the scene with interest, but as her father marched out of the school with her still secured on one arm holding her schoolbooks in the other hand she realized that she just might be still in trouble. Her worries were confirmed when Adam sat her down on her own feet and took her hand firmly in his.

"Now we're going to visit your friend and you will tell Mister O'Brien exactly everything that has happened." He stated.

"But daddy, Mister O'Brien says that helping to cheat is nearly as bad as cheating itself." Sara objected and dug her heels into the ground.

"I know." Adam simply replied, then swatted her backside. "Now quit your dawdling."

Sara scuttled and reached back to rub away some of the sting. She gave her father a reproachful look and a pout formed on her face. Unmoved by his daughter's puppy-eyes, Adam led her over to Cormac's house.

"Hello Adam! I saw you riding into town. Are you already finished up at the lumber camp?"

"Nearly. Little Joe and two ranch hands came up to help us. Thanks to them we finished most of the hard work. Little Joe stayed up there and will finish the rest tomorrow. But, Mr O'Brien I'm here on a personal matter."

Cormac raised his eyebrows as Adam continued. "My daughter has something to tell you."

Adam guided Sara to the front and once she saw the frown build on the large smith's face, the courage she had gathered on the way to the house disappeared. "I… uh… Kylie helped me cheat on a test and I talked her into doing my homework. And… and I wanted to say I'm sorry." She stuttered.

"Kylie Mary O'Brien! Come here!" Cormac bellowed.

**Meanwhile back at the Ponderosa**

Rhys was rolling from side to side in the bed. His leg was hurting, but he had no wish to take the medicine the doc had left him. The last time he had a nightmare about the first day of the Battle of Manassas. He reached up and scratched the left part of his face. The scars were itching and inside the cavity, where his eye had been, the feeling was even worse. However he knew this was a good sign that he was healing.

Hoss entered the room, once he heard the noises of Rhys tossing. "Ya should take some of the medicine. It will help ya with the pain." He spoke soothingly. He immediately saw that Rhys' was feeling worse. His eyes were wide open and full of fear, making him look even younger than he was. The man reminded him of a frightened wounded animal.

"No, Ah won't take anymore of that. Ya'll have no idea of the images which are haunting me. The medicine makes them come back. Jist give me some whiskey." He pleaded.

"You take some of the medicine and I'll get you something to drink." Hoss said gently and opened the bottle with the medicine. "Just one spoon and then I will go down and fetch somethin' for you."

Eager that he was allowed to finally get a drink Rhys agreed and swallowed his dose. "Get it now, please." Then he sunk back into the bed and fell asleep.

Hoss watched the young man with a heavy heart. He had barely been able to sleep last night and today the boy had barely an hour's rest. .

"What have you been through?" Hoss whispered, but he received no answer. Rhys was already fast asleep and trapped in his memories.

**Flashback**

Rhys frantically reloaded his gun, then aimed over the rails and fired blindly. The thick smoke of the gunpowder was hanging in the air as he suddenly heard screams and the sound of steel clashing close to his left. He reloaded his musket, then looked around. A corporal was waving to him and his men yelling something, but he wasn't able to hear it through the sound of the shooting.

Suddenly someone appeared behind the man and stabbed him in the back with the bayonet. The tip of the blade came out of the chest and the man sunk to the ground without another word. Rhys screamed towards his companions and pointed towards the enemy. They had once again broken through their lines. He aimed at the man who had just killed the sergeant and pulled the trigger. The bullet missed, but before the man could react three other bullets entered his body and he sagged across the sergeant he just had killed.

More men, in blue uniforms appeared out of the veil of smoke and fired their guns. Most bullets missed, but a few hit their targets and a new choir of screams echoed through the air. Rhys drew his bayonet trying to fasten it on his musket, but the enemy didn't leave him enough time. They charged screaming towards them. The first man to reach Rhys was a short, thin person with a small moustache. His eyes were widened in panic as he tried to stab Rhys in the stomach. The young man dodged the stab, grabbed the barrel of the gun and burrowed his own bayonet in the man's throat. With a gurgling sound the man's hands went up to his throat trying to stop the blood flow with his hands.

Rhys was now standing with an enemy gun in his hands. For a moment he was too astonished to move. He could never have imagined that he wold kill a man like this, a single coldblooded stab in the throat. However he didn't have more time to think over what he had done. The next enemy attacked him. He tried to hit Rhys in the face with the rifle butt. Rhys ducked under the blow drew his weapon back then stabbed the man in the chest. With a crunching sound the blade entered the man's ribcage through the breast bone and the man fell backwards yanking the weapon out of Rhys' hands. Now he was suddenly standing unarmed in the middle of the battle.

It was then the young officer appeared. Screaming wildly he swung his sabre against Rhys, who stumbled back to get away. The blade missed his throat within an inch. All of sudden the man stumbled over a corpse and nearly lost his footing. Rhys jumped forward, grabbed the man's sword-arm and stared straight into his face. He was young, maybe just a year older than him. He had brown eyes and short black hair. A small scar cleaved one of his eyebrows. They were about the same height, but Rhys had broader shoulders and right now he was using all his strength to hold away the sabre from his body.

Suddenly he spotted that the officer was fumbling around at his belt. He glanced down and spotted the dagger just as the other man's fingers found the handle. Rhys let go of the man's sword-arm with one hand, then punched him hard in the face. For a second the man's body went limp and that was all the time Rhys needed. He grabbed the handle of the dagger, drew the weapon just to stab it back into the officer's body. His eyes went wide of the shock and the sudden pain. Rhys wrestled the sword from the man's hand and pushed him back. Without a word the officer fell backwards, gasping for air. The knife had punctured the poor man's lung. In the next second a bayonet sunk into Rhys' leg.

Screaming of pain he swung the sabre and hit something soft. Blood spattered his face and he closed his eyes out of reflex. Something heavy fell against him and he tumbled to the ground. The bayonet twisted in his leg and his eyes shot open with pain. He stared right into his stepfather's face.

**End Flashback**

Rhys woke up with a scream that echoed through the house and startled everyone in the surrounding place. Hoss who had just been chopping wood, was close to hit the axe into his foot. The scream faded off slowly, but then turned into deep sobs. Hoss dropped the axe onto the chopping block and ran up to the guestroom.

"I DIDN'T KILL YOU! YOU DIED IN THE FIRE!" Rhys cried just as Hoss entered the room. "It wasn't my fault! Not my fault! I just wanted to save Armelle then get you!" His voice died of in a whimper. Hoss sat carefully down on the bed and put a hand on Rhys' forehead. Startled by the sudden touch Rhys tried to hit him, but Ben's son just grabbed his hand then drew him close and captured him in a hug.

"It was just a bad dream. Nothing more; just a bad dream." Hoss soothed, holding him tightly.

"I didn't want to kill any of them." Rhys whispered then he fell back asleep.

"I know you didn't."

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><p><strong>So here's the next update. I hope you liked it. <strong>

**I hope everything was clear and you understood everything. If you don't remember. Here's a short recap: Rhys didn't kill his stepfather. He died in a fire, which also killed Rhys mom. Rhys saved Armelle out of the fire, but it was too late to go back in and get his parents.**

**I did not want to put this at the beginning, because then I thought I would tell you too much what the chapter would be about. The next update will take a bit longer, because I have to finish my final assignment. I hope that was the right word. So you have to be patient. Sorry for that.**


	11. Chapter 11

This time I simply couldn't think of a title. Sorry about that. Hope you could enjoy it anyway ;)

A big thank to Gaben who betaed this chapter for me.

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><p>Sarah and Adam stood just in front of Cormac front door. Sara winced at the loud voice that boomed through the house when the local smithy yelled for his daughter to appear at once. Within seconds Kylie was scrambling down the stairs and quickly made her way over to him. "Did you help Sara to cheat?"<p>

Kylie looked at Sara's forlorn expression and mirrored it, as she turned back to look into her father's angry eyes. "I… uhm… yes, daddy." She mumbled feebly.

"You know exactly what I think about that young lady. Helping to cheat is nearly as worse as cheating itself. You help the other person to betray themselves and help them lie." He turned her sideways and added swift smack to her behind. Kylie yelped and quickly threw her hand back.

"I told her so, but then she said she didn't wanna talk to me anymore, cuz she said, she was goin' to be in trouble, cause of me!" She sniffed, while trying to rub the sting out of her behind. "And… and I never had a good friend afore and I didn't want to lose her." Kylie started to cry.

Cormac looked downright furious and Adam had blushed with embarrassment. Sara had left out that little detail. He felt how her little hand gripped his harder and crouched down in front of her so they were at the same eye-level. "Did you do that, Sara? Did you tell her that you wouldn't talk to her anymore if she didn't let you copy her homework?" He all but growled. He was deeply disappointed. He had always considered her to be caring person.

"No, daddy. It wasn't like that. I… I told her I didn't want to talk to her cuz she got me in trouble for not letting me copy her homework." Sara protested, "It was the other way around." She added in hope that her father would understand. He obviously didn't. He turned her sideways and added the sharpest smack she had ever experienced to her backside. She yelped and tears sprung into her eyes.

"Sara Elizabeth Cartwright. I don't even know where to begin. I'm so angry with you right now. There is no difference between what Kylie said and your version of the story. You wouldn't have gotten in all this trouble in the beginning, if you had asked for help instead of cheating. And now your best friend tells me that you abused that friendship by bullying her into helping you with your homework. I'm deeply disappointed young lady." He stood up keeping his daughters hand in a firm grip. After that lecture Sara started to cry. She hadn't exactly understood everything that her father had meant, but she had realized that she had done something really mean to her friend.

"I'm so... hic… sorry. I didn't wanna get ya into trouble and I didn't wanta be mean to ya, I jist…hic… tried to get myself outta this trouble. And I's sorry for getting ya into trouble… hic… I didn't mean ta do that. You are bestest friend…I didn't…hic…mean…ta cause…hic…all this trouble." She sniffed scrubbing at her nose.

"It's okay. I forgive ya." Kylie stepped forward and pulled Sara into a tight hug.

"Are ya still my friend?"

"Yep, the bestest." The other girl gave Sara a big smile, which she couldn't help but to return.

"That was very kind of you Kylie." Cormac said and stroked his daughter's head.

"Am I still in trouble?"

"We'll talk about it later, but for now, go back in and do your homework."

Kylie nodded, gave her friend a last sympathetic look and disappeared into the house. Adam scrubbed the back of his head. He had no idea what to say. Sara would be one sorry little girl, once they had gotten back home.

"I'm sorry Cormac. I had no idea of this until now."

"It's alright." He replied and crouched down in front of Sara. "But, you will not repeat this, am I clear young lady?"

"Yes, sir." Sara quickly replied somewhat intimidated by the large blacksmith.

"Good." He gave her a small smile. "I know you're a good girl, Sara and meant no ill by your actions. But you have to think how it feels for the others when you do something like that."

Sara nodded and gripped her father's hand tighter.

"Alright. We'll better head home now. We've got some things to deal with, and I've heard you have to help Hop Sing with the laundry." He raised an eyebrow at her and Sara blushed.

**A few hours later at the Ponderosa**

Sara was standing in front of a large vessel nearly filled to the brim with warm water. She held a washboard in one hand and her bedclothes in the others. Hop Sing had showed her how to wash them, but hadn't seemed to make any progresses. With a frustrated sound she tossed it back into the water, only earning herself a swat from an irritated Hop Sing.

"Continue cleaning little missy. Little girl made mess now she has to clean mess." He scolded and went on to dump another arm full of clothes into another barrel of hot water.

"But Hop Sing. I've been scrubbing at this one since I gotten home." She pouted. The Chinese cook looked up and simply motioned her to continue. "No fair."

"It is fair, little lady and I suggest you to stop your whining, or you'll earn yourself some more smacks to your bottom." Adam warned behind her.

Sara quickly closed her mouth, when she remembered what had happened shortly after they had come back. Her father had given her a thorough scolding and announced if she ever misbehaved again while he was away and someone was babysitting her, she would get another spanking as soon he heard of her misdeeds. And as a reminder she had been turned over his knees as soon as she had changed into a pair of overalls and received three firm swats.

"What time is it dad?" She asked.

"Your time isn't up yet."

Sara harrumphed, grabbed the bed cloth with both hands and rubbed it furiously against the washboard. Why couldn't anyone make blankets which weren't so sticky to dog hair? Black Knight would never, ever be allowed to get into her bed again. Well… maybe she would allow him once or twice, if she was sure that no one would see him.

She looked down on the ground and wiggled her toes. The yard had gotten all muddy from the spilled water and the barrels weren't waterproof. Suddenly she heard the clippity-clop of hooves and looked up in hope one of her uncle's had come back and save her from all this work. However, when she spotted her grandfather, she ducked her head and grabbed the blanket tighter. She had hoped he wouldn't get home until late, and hopefully she would be asleep, and maybe he would forget everything naughty she had done, completely or at least until the next day. Suddenly she felt a light tap on her shoulder and looked up into her father's eyes.

"I think you owe your grandpa an explanation, Sara. Go ahead and tell him."

"Okay." She mumbled, "I'm jist goin' to finish this and then I go to…"

"Oh no, young lady. You go right now!" He stated emphasizing the now with a light smack to his daughters rump. Slowly Sara made her way over to the barn. Once she arrived, Ben had already unsaddled, Buck and was grooming him with a brush.

"Hello little one." He greeted her warmly.

"Uhm… grandpa… I got somethin' to tell ya."

Ben frowned sensing the child's unease. He finished of grooming his horse, then walked over to his fidgeting grandchild. He crouched down in front of her and stroked her head. "So what did you want to tell me?" He prompted gently.

Sara stammered at the beginning: she didn't want to tell him anything, but she sagged when she realised she really needed to. Slowly she gained confidence and rambled on about all her misdeeds. She looked up feeling the tears that had started to trickle down her cheeks again. "And dad said he would leave it up to ya." She finished, then quickly looked down at her muddy feet when she saw the disappointment in his eyes.

Ben sighed and shook his head. "I'm very disappointed in you Sara. That's not the first time you've lied to me. Do you remember the fair? The next day you promised not to lie to me again, yet now you're telling me you've got caught in telling another lie. To top off that; you've cheated in an exam, cheated with your homework and mistreated your good friend, Kylie. I want you to go up to your room, and think about how you will stop your habit with lying. I'll be up shortly and then I want to hear a good answer." Everything was said in a calm voice, but Sara was already crying after the second sentence. Sniffling she turned around and ran into the house. She only stopped to brush off her feet, then continued her way into the house.

Ben shook his head. How hadn't he seen that coming? He felt like a fool and a part of him was angry with Sara, for tricking him like that. However, he knew she had still much to learn. When he stood up Adam came into the barn and raised an eyebrow at him.

"What will you do now?" He asked, "I left it up to you; since you were in charge, when she did all of these things."

"Well, first I wanted to ask you if she has told me everything." Ben replied. "She told me about the lying, the homework and how she cheated on the test and how she treated Kylie."

"That sums it up pretty well."

"Adam… I should have seen these things. I just wanted to think I could trust her, but obviously I can't." His face turned grim, "She will learn that I'm not always lenient with her and that lying has a price."

"Well, before you spank her, I wanted to tell you a few things too. I think a part of the reason she did these things is; she thought she was stupid not being able to solve exercises Kylie could. And she didn't want to disappoint any of us."

"I will consider that, but I also intend on letting her know that blatantly lying is inexcusable and terribly hurtful."

Meanwhile inside, Sara was having a difficult time thinking of how she could stop her lying. Most of the time, she didn't think of it as a bad thing, she had done it a lot of time before; had to, it kept her alive. But, now everyone thought it was a horrible thing to do. She did feel guilty when they found out, but before that, she never really thought about it. She simply did it. Suddenly she heard footsteps approach her room. She sat down on the edge of her bed, nervously swinging her legs. She had to simply just stop lying, but it wasn't that easy. Her mouth often moved, before she could think what to say. The door opened and she spotted her grandpa. He still had that disappointed look in his eyes and she felt the tears well up into her eyes again. She didn't want him to be sad.

When Ben saw the tears spill out of Sara's eyes his heart melted. "Come here little one." He sat down on bedside chair and spread out his arms. Hesitantly, Sara made her way over to him and allowed him to pull her onto his lap. "Why do you keep lying to me? It makes me very sad that you don't trust me."

"I… don't want to make ya sad, grandpa. I jist don't want to get inta trouble and then I say things I don't mean ta say. Ya know?" She hiccupped and scrubbed at her eyes.

"I can understand that, but lying is a very naughty thing to do. You hurt yourself and others and in the end you have yourself ensnared in a net of lies you can't get out off. You've already experienced that, didn't you?"

"Kinda, it always felt bad and I was real nervous, when ya came to school, cause I was afraid ya might find out, that's why I always wanted to go so early." She admitted and looked down, "I wanted to be sure to have enough time to copy Kylie's homework."

"Good, I think you've understood the importance of telling the truth, but there were several other things you did wrong. Can you tell me why it was wrong?"

"I cheated and that's bad, cuz I don't learn anythin' and that means I don't get smart like Kylie, but Miss Evans said I'm good at other stuff, like I knew that the snake I put into Garrett's desk wasn't poison." She looked proudly up at him.

"That doesn't mean that was a good thing to do Sara and I'm sure Adam explained to you why." Ben frowned.

Sara nodded and continued, "And I was also very mean to Kylie, cause I told her I didn't want to talk with her no more, because she didn't want to let me copy her homework, which is a very wrong thing to do. I mean not talking to Kylie and copying homework, both things are wrong."

"Good, you've understood what you did wrong and why it was wrong to do it." He praised, "Then there's only one more thing to do." Ben stood her up and started to unbutton her pants.

"No, grandpa please. Ya don't hafta do that. I'm sorry." She pleaded and tried to squirm out of his grip.

"You've earned every bit of this spanking, Sara, now stop fighting." He ordered and managed to undo one of the straps of her bib overall. Sara stopped, but instead she started to cry softly as he pulled down her pants and guided her across his knees. Wasting no time he quickly brought his hand down with a sharp smack on her bottom. Sara yelped and her earlier accepting of Ben's decision disappeared, when she felt the sting in her backside. She started to kick and wriggle for all she was worth, but Ben simply trapped her legs under one of his and continued to smack her backside at the same steady pace. The girl's crying turned into hitched sobbing, when she realized she wasn't getting anywhere.

Ben had never spanked Sara before. He had always been the one who had spoiled her and given her some special treats. She would have never thought he would actually spank her until she was sure she would never be able to sit down again. He was a lot worse than Uncle Joe. As suddenly as Ben had started, he stopped and helped her to stand up. Sara shifted her weight from foot to foot trying to sooth the furious sting in her backside. As that didn't work out she went over to rub the seat of her underwear clad behind.

Ben let her cry and rub for a couple of minutes before picking her up and settling her down on his lap, where she tucked herself in against his chest trying to take some weight of her burning backside. Gently he rubbed her back and arm as she cried herself out against his shoulder. Once she had calmed down enough to listen to him he released her out of his grip.

"Sara, it's over now. You and I are the same as always. We were before I spanked you. I want you to remember that I love you and always will. I also want you to remember to mind me and stop lying. It may have been useful for you earlier, before you came to live with us, but now you have to stop it. It will only get you into trouble and hurt those who love you."

"I've noticed that." She sniffed and reached back to rub her behind.

Ben chuckled and placed a soft kiss on the top of her head. "You will always be my special little girl."

"I love ya too grandpa, and I will do my bestest to stop lying and I will never ever do something naughty again. I promise." She declared.

Ben was moved by her honest naivety, though there was no way she would able to keep the last promise. At least in the way she thought of it. She would always be a little troublemaker, but as long as it was the harmless mischief of a child, he would look at her promise as a kept one. "I know you will." He replied and kissed her forehead, then suggested, "Now, why don't we go down and set the table together? I'm sure Hop Sing will be happy about the help."

**Meanwhile in Rhys' room**

The young soldier woke up slowly and looked around. He was still somewhat groggy but at least he hadn't been haunted by any nightmares this time, instead he had dreamed of his home when his parents had been alive.  
>He even felt a bit better. His leg was barely hurting and he wasn't as tired either. Slowly he sat up in the bed and looked for his clothes. Once he had gotten dressed he looked for his crutches, but they were gone. With a small curse, he hobbled out of the room and steadied himself heavily on the rail above the stairs. He spotted Ben and Sara setting the table together.<p>

"Mister Cartwright! May I please have mah crutches back? I know what the doctor said, but Ah can't keep still for such a long time. However, Ah promise you not to go further than your veranda."

Ben looked up and saw Rhys looking down at him. "One more day and then you get them, Rhys."

The young man snorted and hopped down the stairs on his good leg. Ben watched him closely ready to step in case Rhys stumbled. However, Rhys succeeded quite gracefully and with a somewhat triumphant grin on his face landed safely at the bottom of the stairs. "As you see, Ah don't necessarily need them, but I would appreciate if you would give them to me. Hopping around on one leg is quite arduous."

Ben glared at Rhys and growled, "Alright, you'll get your crutches, but if I see you as much as sticking a toe further out than the veranda, you'll lose your crutches until you're completely healed."

"Good." The young man sighed in relief. Now he would be able to get out of the room and maybe escape his nightmares. His memories of this morning's happenings were a blur of pictures from his dreams and Hoss keeping him still to keep him from ripping up the wound in his leg again. He didn't want that something like that to happen again. When he realized that he had been standing still for a while he blushed and quickly headed over to the blue chair in front of the fireplace. As soon as his leg was well enough he would leave them. They were taking a big risk, by taking him in and helping him.

He looked over at Sara, who reminded him so much of his own little sister. He was risking their safety by being here, their family. It was nice to feel part of a family again, but he couldn't allow them to be in danger at his expense. He hoped his baby sister was just as safe. Yes, as soon as he was better he would go out and look for her.

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><p><strong>Alright, soon the real plot will start to roll on. Rhys needed these few days to recover, but that's everything I'm going to tell you. I hope you enjoyed it and please review.<strong>


	12. Finding Families and Decisions

Re-cap

Sara has gotten into some trouble in school while Adam was up at the lumber camp. She tricked her best friend into doing her homework, lied several times, cheated on a test and let Black Knight sleep in her bed. Adam returned at the same day when Lorraine Evans, the school teacher, found out about her cheating. Adam let Ben choose how to punish her, after she had washed the dog hair out of her bedclothes. At this evening Sara received her very first spanking from her grandfather. After she had calmed down Ben helped her set the table.

**Finding Families and Decisions**

During the whole dinner Sara was squirming around on her chair, trying to find a comfortable position to sit. Adam had allowed her to take a pillow, but her backside was still uncomfortable. She was unusual quiet during the whole dinner, barely saying a single word.

The rest of the Cartwright's and their guest stopped talking to her, once they realized she didn't want to speak. She was still ashamed of her actions. After the dinner she helped carrying the dishes into the kitchen, then curled herself up in the big red chair in front of the fire. After a while Adam picked her up, sat down on the chair and settler her on his lap. She was still quiet and picked on one of the buttons of his shirt.

"Are you still troubled about what happened today?" he asked gently and stroked her back. Sara shook her head and tucked herself against his chest. "Sweetheart you have to tell me what troubles you, otherwise I can't help you," he coaxed trying to get an answer out of her.

"I jist wanna be in yer good books again," she mumbled softly. Adam frowned. She had never been like this before. He knew Ben had talked with her afterwards and cuddled her until she had calmed down.

"You are in my good books Sara. You've received your punishment and everything is forgiven." He jiggled her a bit, then kissed her temple. "What makes you think, that I'm still angry with you?"

"You swatted me and ya were gone for a really long time. I…" she broke off and sniffled. In that moment Adam realized what was really troubling her. She had missed him. And when he had returned he had found out that she had gotten in a real heap of trouble. And all he had done since returning home was to scold her.

"Aw, you know I love you and you will always be my special little girl," he said softly and pulled her closer. He should have known that it would trouble if he went away. She was attached to him the most and that was only natural after everything she had gone through. "I won't go away for anytime soon." Sara didn't reply, she only grabbed one of his hands and squeezed it tightly with hers.

Ben and the rest of the Cartwright's watched the heart-warming scene without a word. They all knew how Sara felt.

Rhys also watched the scene with a lump in his throat. Sara was obviously deeply loved by everyone in the family. He felt that it would be the best if he left; soon, before anyone could find out that the Cartwright's had a soldier of the Confederates in their house. Protecting him could mean heartache for the family.

**That same evening in Virginia City at the Bucket of Blood**

William Talbot squinted down at the empty glass in his hands. He had just used up the last of his money. He glanced over at some of the miners who were laughing over a story one of them were telling. He really wanted to have another drink, but for that he needed someone who would offer him one.

"Jonathan. Can't ya buy me a drink? For sake of the good ole times," he asked with an unsteady voice. One of the miners looked over at him then pushed a nearly empty whiskey bottle in William's direction. "God bless ya, Jonathan," he mumbled and gulped down the last of the liquid.

"Hey! I paid for that bottle!" one of the other miners yelled, when he saw William drinking it.

"Calm down; I'll pay ya," Jonathan grumbled and took out a small coin from his pocket.

"Jist don't give him anymore ta drink. Since he's been workin' for that O'Brien guy, he doesn't tell us any good stories anymore," the miner grumbled and ordered another bottle of whiskey.

William's mind was already blurred by the amount he had been drinking, but he felt responsible. Cormac had given him work and paid him well. But he had also told him to keep his mouth shut about the southerner; otherwise he would lose the job.. _It was just because the Cartwright's are involved,_ he thought angrily. They acted all high and mighty as if the town was belonging to them. William believed, they had surely ordered O'Brien to give him work, so he would be silent, but if there really was a southerner staying hidden in their house he would surely be able to make some money from it. Soon he was mumbling and talking himself into a rage.

"I got a story for ya Daniel!" he yelled. "It's about the Cartwright's. I heard one of them talkin' about some secret."

Some of the miners turned to him, but most of them ignored him. However Daniel wasn't one of them. He staggered over to William and leant close to him. "And what dirty little secret would that be?" he slurred with mocking voice.

"Give me somethin' ta drink an' I tell ya,"

After some moments of hesitation Daniel waved his hand towards the bartender who handed him a glass of beer. "Yer story better be good."

"It is. But first I have to take sip of this golden liquid," William replied and raised the glass of beer to his lips taking a big gulp. "Heavenly," he sighed. "Alright, where was I? Yes, now I remember. I was jist sitting by the school fence minding my own business when I overheard the youngest Cartwright talk about a man of the south."

"The youngest Cartwright; ya mean little Joe? I though he was finished with school," one of the miners interrupted.

"Shut up. He doesn't mean little Joe, he means that little girl Adam adopted; the little runaway. Heavens knows if she wasn't one of Cartwright's little accident, but continue, what was about the man of the south?" Daniel urged.

"I was jist goin' to tell ya. She said he had really bad scares and he had been in the war. She also said he was wounded. Probably met someone nearby and killed the poor guy. Supposedly the soldier was very famous and has killed a lot of our fellas in the war. He has probably been sent here to scout the area to find out if the south can attack us and get our mines under their control. And now the Cartwright's are hiding him. I bet they're afraid to lose their property in case the south comes up here. I'm sure ya heard of the Second Battle of Manassas."

All the miners nodded. In their state they didn't realize how insane William's story sounded. William however enjoyed the attention and continued to embellish his story. None of the miners or William noticed the two groups of men watching and listening intently to the story. One of the groups consisted out of three soldiers of the Union, while the others were some farmers. One of them was Robert Aldwood. When William was finished Robert stood up and walked over to the drunkard. The farmer's steps were somewhat insecure, but still quite steady. He put an arm around William's shoulder and leant closer to him.

"For how long have you known about his?" he asked with feigned affability.

"A few days," William replied with a shrug.

"Did O'Brien tell you not to speak to anyone about this?"

William was meanwhile too drunk to get suspicious. "Yeah, he told me to be quiet and gave me work and money in exchange."

Robert nodded slowly. Everything made more sense now. No one who was clear in his mind would give William some work. He was lazy and sloppy. "Thank you my friend," he said and patted William's shoulder, then he headed back to the table. Five more farmers waited with him.

"So was he telling the truth or was he just blabbing?" one of them asked.

"I don't know, but it's mighty suspicious I think. No one who's in his right mind gives William a job. We should talk with Cormac," Robert lowered his voice when he recognized that one of the Union Soldiers was watching him. The other leant closer to him and listened intently as he explained his plan for them.

**Next Morning**

Adam woke up early in the morning. Without opening his eyes he felt the tucked up small bundle that was his sleeping daughter. Her breathing didn't change, but she snuggled closer to him and used his arm as a pillow. A smile crossed his lips and he opened his eyes. The soft purrs of her breathing reached his ears and he gently turned around so he could look at her. She didn't wake up from his movements, nor did she stir. Adam settled on his side and steadied his head with one hand, while he stroked Sara's head with the other. The little girl didn't react for a couple of minutes, but then she grabbed it and hugged it to her chest. With a smile he remembered yesterday evening.

**Flashback**

"Sara, sweetheart. I have to stand up now," Adam said gently and lifted her up. The child nodded, then made a beeline over to her grandfather as soon as her feet touched the ground and climbed up on Ben's knees. He chuckled and put both arms around her. He understood that she wanted to get spoiled and cuddled for the rest of the evening. She had had a rough day and wanted reassurances that she was still very much loved by her family.

Once Ben had to get up to start on his paperwork, only Hoss and Rhys were sitting in front of the fire. Little Joe had joined his older brother in the barn and was helping him with the last of the chores. For a short moment Sara stood still in front of the chair, where her grandpa had been in, but then a small smile appeared on her face. She ran over to Hoss and tapped him softly on the knee. "Can you read a story for me Uncle Hoss?" she asked giving him her biggest puppy-eyes. Hoss, never being able to deny her anything, when she looked at him that way, bent forward and tapped her nose.

"Of course I do lambkin. Go and fetch your book and I'll read you a story."

Sara nodded avidly and ran up the stairs. A few seconds later she descended them, taking two steps at the time. Hoss picked her up and sat her down on his knees. "Can ya read Red Riding Hood?"

"Of course I can. Okay, on which page now…. ah here it is. Once upon a time…"

When Adam returned Sara was fast asleep in Hoss' lap. His younger brother was stroking the child's back with soft movements. Rhys was watching the scene over the pages of a book. A smile was playing on his lips then his gaze flickered over to Adam. He greeted him with a nod then looked down at the pages of the book again. Adam went over to Hoss and picked up his little daughter.

"Bedtime for you, I think," he said softly. Sara wrapped put an arm around his shoulder and continued to sleep. "Thanks for watching her Hoss."

"No problem Adam. All she wanted was a bit of cuddle-time," Hoss replied before opening the book with the fairy tales of the Brothers Grimm again. "I jist want to know how the story ends," he blushed shyly before giving Adam a pointed glare; daring him to laugh.

The oldest of the Cartwright sons just shook his head and walked up the stairs. Once up in Sara's room he patted her back until she opened her eyes to give him a sleepy gaze.

"Tired," she mumbled.

"I see that. But you have to put on your nightshirt," he placed her on her own feet, but held her back as she wanted to go to her bed. "Hey ho. Wait there. You're going to fall asleep the second you lie down. You have to get changed first."

Sara 'harrumphed', but stood still until her father returned with her nightshirt. She quickly changed into it, then crawled under her covers, where she promptly fell asleep.

Several hours later she came into his room mumbling something about a nightmare. Adam had been too tired to remove her and so she ended up in his bed attached to his side.

**End Flashback**

Adam lay down as comfortable he could get, while Sara kept his hand in a death smiled to himself at the image of this feisty little moppet. Like all sleeping children, though she looked like an angel now. She had stolen most of the blanket during the night, but at least she didn't kick in her sleep. He dozed off as he watched her and soon enough they were both asleep again.

None of them saw the light coming out of Rhys room. The young soldier was sitting on the edge of his bed, then carefully got up on his feet. His leg still hurt, but he had been able to rest for nearly a whole week now. He felt much stronger. Rhys picked up the crutches, but he didn't intend to use them. He wanted them as an assurance; in the case he lost his balance. Slowly he put some weight on his injured leg, but the pain didn't get much worse. He let out a relieved sigh. If he strengthened his leg every night, he would be able to leave on Sunday morning, when everyone else was in church.

* * *

><p>So first of all a big shoutout for gaben who betaed this story for me. She also suggested some titles and that way she helped me to create this one. I think it fits pretty good.<p>

And thanks to everyone who has reviewed this story and I also thank you for your patience. I know I should update more often, but I'm still awfully busy. I will really really try to update more often. But in december I have a huge presentation, about my final assignement, so I probably won't have much time to write. However I will try to finish a chapter for my other story "Amalia & Rose". I only have to write about one more page, then it's finished.

So I hope you enjoyed the chapter and please drop me a line. I'm always interested in your opinions and constructive criticism.


	13. Trails and Cinnamon Rolls

**Trails and Cinnamon Rolls**

**Early Morning at the Big House on the Ponderosa….. **

When Sara woke up she was lying next to her father. For the first couple of seconds, she couldn't remember how she got into his bed, but then she remembered her nightmare again and tucked herself in closer to her father's side. In her dream, she had been alone out in the woods again. That had been one of the worst experiences of her life and she had no desire to go through everything again.

"You finally awake, little sleepy head?" Adam teased and rubbed her back with one hand. Sara nodded and closed her eyes again. "Ah-ah. It's time to get up now, sweetheart. You have to go to school."

Sara harrumphed and mumbled something Adam didn't understand. He sat up in the bed and picked his little daughter up. "Now, now; are you grumpy this morning?" He tickled her sides causing her to giggle.

"Uh-uh." She shook her head. "I'm jist happy you're back home," She reached up with both arms giving him a quick hug and a peck to the cheek.

Adam answered by embracing her gently and then kissed the top of her head. "I'm also glad that I'm home; now I can look after you so you don't get into anymore mischief," he teased and Sara blushed. "Come on, go and get dressed," he ordered with gentle voice and sat her down on her feet. Sara nodded and obediently headed to her room. Adam was a bit surprised that she didn't try to convince him that this day was the perfect one to allow her to wear pants for school. It had nearly become a daily ritual between them. Obviously she was trying to be on her best behaviour. Adam stood up with a small smile and got himself dressed.

During the breakfast Sara was back to her normal self again. She kept on and on chatting with Little Joe, making plans to go fishing with him in late in the afternoon, completely forgetting about her first private lessons with Lorraine. As Adam reminded her about that, a small pout appeared on her face.

"Can't I go tomorrow instead?"

"No, you will go today. You need these extra lessons. You have to catch up to the other children, and because of your cheating you're even more behind," he reprimanded her firmly.

Sara blushed and directed her gaze on her breakfast again. She didn't want to cross her father again, so she kept quiet and continued to eat her breakfast, without any complaints.

Rhys had joined them for breakfast. He leant his crutches up against his chair, then watched the scene with a small smile. It seemed as if Sara was going to be back to her old sassy ways soon. When he looked down on his plate again he could almost feel Ben Cartwright's disapproving glare at his amusement of his granddaughter's antics. Rhys didn't let it bother him; the family's warmth and support was there even in times of conflict. Just the same he suppressed another chuckle and picked up his fork.

A few minutes later Sara was finished and ready for school. Adam took her hand and led her out to the wagon, which had already been prepared by Hoss.

**Virginia City…..**

When Adam drove into Virginia City, he immediately spotted the large crowd in front of 'Cormac's Smithy'. Lorraine was standing at the fence of the school with a grim expression on her face while she tried to console an hysterically crying Kylie. The small girl had her face buried in her teachers dress and her whole body was shaking with sobs.

Adam stopped the wagon, and then climbed down. "Sara, stay in the wagon!" he ordered firmly.

"But Kylie…" Sara objected and stood up.

"Sara! Sit down now!" He barked. The small girl stopped in the middle of her movement when she heard the firm tone in her father's voice, then she sat back down on the wagon. "I know you're concerned about your friend Sara, but right now you have to let me handle it," he then added with gentler voice.

Once Sara nodded, Adam turned around and headed over to Lorraine. Something must have happened if Kylie was that upset. He didn't want Sara to see something that might shock or scare her. He reached Lorraine within a few seconds. The teacher had knelt down and put her arms around Kylie who was still heaving with sobs.

"Lorraine? What happened?" Adam asked as he knelt down in front of her and put one hand on Kylie's shoulder.

"Kylie found her father outside the shop this morning," she replied then directed her gaze towards the crying child. "Shhh, Kylie. The doctor said that he's going to be alright."

Adam stood up and turned to look over to the crowd again. Doc Martin led three men who were carrying a limp body over to the doc's office. He immediately recognized Cormac's frame and so did Sara. Adam heard her gasp right behind him. She had climbed down from the wagon and followed him. Her concern about her friend had overwhelmed her. Adam shook his head and grabbed her hand, leading her back over to Lorraine.

"Stay with Miss Evans and Kylie. I will go and look after Cormac."

"Okay, daddy. Do you… do you think he's gonna be alright?" she asked with feeble voice. A single tear trickled down her cheek and her bottom lip quivered as she tried to keep herself from crying. Adam crouched down in front of her and stroked her head.

"I'm sure he's going to be alright again, sweetheart. Now look after Kylie. She needs you right now,"

Sara nodded and stepped closer to her friend. With slow movements she wrapped her arms around her and Miss Evans, who wrapped them both into her arms. Then she gestured for Adam to go and look after Cormac. _"I can handle them."_ She mouthed soundlessly.

Adam nodded and went over to the crowd who was following the three men to Doctor Martin's office. A concerned and grim expression was on Doc Martin's face. When Paul detected Adam's presence, he motioned him to follow him.

The oldest of the three Cartwright sons nodded and followed him and the three men into the doctor's office. Cormac was gently laid down on a bed and then the three men stepped back. One of them was Martin Brown, Garrett's father. He gave Adam a brisk nod, then turned towards the doctor.

"I was the first in the place, when I heard Kylie scream. Cormac was conscious at that moment, but as soon as I came over to them, he fainted. I took Kylie to Miss Evans, in case you want to check her over," he said. He tried to keep a calm voice, but he was visibly shaken.

"Thank you, Mister Brown. Could you and Adam stay here and help me? I need to check him over and Martin… can you meanwhile tell me everything about the state Mister O'Brien was in when you found him?"

"Of course."

While the doctor started to examine Cormac, Martin told him everything he had seen. "Mister O'Brien was lying just in front of the doorstep of his 'Smithy'. I didn't see any attackers, only Kylie; she was kneeling next to her father, pleading him to stay awake."

Doctor Martin nodded and checked Cormac's ears at the same time.

"Uhm doc… I think his hearing is good." Mister Brown said slowly.

"I'm checking if he's bleeding out of his ears. That would be a sign for a skull fracture," Paul Martin replied briskly, then let out a relieved sigh. "No blood. Thank God. I think he's got a bad concussion. And….." He moved his hands over Cormac's chest and a soft groan escaped the man's lips. "And some broken ribs; we'll need to bandage them. Adam please sit him up for me, while I go and fetch the bandage."

"Yes, doc." Adam put his hands under Cormac's shoulders and sat him up gently.

Meanwhile Martin Brown continued to talk, "There were signs of a fight. A broken stick lay next to him. I think Mr O'Brien got into a brawl or something." The doctor nodded and started to wrap the bandage around Cormac's chest. Suddenly the large blacksmith opened his eyes and groaned, then he stared around the room in panic.

"Kylie! Where's Kylie?" He tried to free himself out of Adam's grip, but he held on firmly.

"She's safe my friend. She's with Lorraine and Sara."

Cormac looked around. His eyes were dilated and his movements were far from balanced. "Bring her to me, please," Then he bit his teeth as the doctor tightened the bandage.

"I'll go and get her," Adam replied and lay him back down on the bed. "Try and get some rest. The sheriff will help to clear everything up."

Cormac closed his eyes and nodded one single time. When Adam opened the door he nearly bumped into Kylie who was trying to shove him aside. He quickly grabbed her hand and slowed her down so she wouldn't launch herself at her injured father, once she got inside.

"Whoa there, slow down. Be gentle with him Kylie," he reminded her softly, "The doc is with him now."

Kylie nodded then walked tentatively into the room where her father was. Doctor Martin was still checking him over, but once they entered the room he stepped back. "He's going to be alright. He's got a bad concussion, a broken rib and a few bruises. He'll be fine in about one or two months."

Kylie paid no attention to him. She simply stared at her father with tears running down her cheeks. "Are ya going to be fine, Papa?"

"Sure I am, sweetie. Come here and give me a hug. That will make me feel better," he ordered and reached out with one hand towards her. Kylie took a few careful steps closer to her father then hugged him carefully. A pitiful sob escaped her throat when she heard the small grimace of pain rumble through his chest. Cormac put a hand on her back and patted her gingerly. "I'm going to be alright, sweetie. Your old dad won't give up that easily." There was a moment of silence in which you could only hear Kylie's soft crying as she clung to her father. After a few seconds the doctor stepped over to them.

"There, there. He's going to be fine Kylie. I will look after him," he said soothingly. "Now your father needs rest. Do you think you can let him sleep a bit?"

Kylie nodded and stepped back. She had calmed down a little by now and rubbed her eyes with one sleeve. She looked over her shoulder when she heard the door open, but when she saw that it was Lorraine she directed her gaze back to her father.

The young woman went over to Adam. Sara followed her so tightly that she was close to step on the hem of her teacher's dress. "Who will take care of Kylie, while Cormac is recovering?" she whispered into Adam's ear. The oldest of the Cartwright sons looked down at her, then down at Sara.

"If it is alright for you Cormac, I and my family will take her in."

"Yes, thank you my friend," Cormac closed his eyes for a moment then looked over at Kylie.

"I don't want to go away. I want to stay!" she protested. "I can…. I can…. sleep here. I don't wanna go. Please don't make me go, Papa."

"Kylie. I need to sleep; naught for long. Do as I say and go with Adam," he ordered gently. Kylie nodded slowly but the tears still continued to trickle down her cheeks. Adam stepped over to her, realizing that she wouldn't move on her own, and picked her up. She buried her head in his shirt and continued to cry.

Sara stood still for a moment not really knowing what to do. Lorraine came to her rescue and led her out of Doctor Martin's house. Adam followed them and together they headed over to a bench. He sat down next to Lorraine, who was holding Sara's hands in hers, and placed Kylie on his knees. They simply stayed like this for a moment, trying to absorb what had happened. Cormac was a much liked personality of Virginia City. He had made himself a name as a good blacksmith, who people trusted. He could also repair just about anything made of metal.

When Adam saw Sheriff Roy Coffee walk up to the doctor's house, he stood up and sat Kylie down next to Lorraine. "Please keep an eye on them for a second. I need to talk to the Sheriff." Lorraine nodded and pulled Kylie closer to her.

Adam turned around and headed back into the building. Roy was already talking with Martin Brown. The man told the Sheriff the same thing he had told the doctor and Adam before, but it was not much help. Roy turned to Doctor Martin and sighed.

"Why don't you think Cormac will be able to tell us anything? I need to know as much as possible to get the one who did this."

"Mister O'Brien has got a bad concussion. He may not remember anything from the recent trauma. He has most likely an amnesia and will not remember anything of what happened shortly before he took this blow to the head," Paul Martin explained, then added, "Plus I say that he needs to rest, before you question him. He's exhausted both physically and mentally. He needs to rest and maybe the memories will come back later."

Roy nodded. "Tell me when he wakes up," then he turned to Adam and Mister Brown, "What about Kylie? She can't live on her own. If anyone of you…"

"We have already decided, that she will live with us at the Ponderosa," Adam interrupted.

"Good, good. But there's just one more thing…. I don't understand why someone would beat up a Cormac; he's a single father. All of town knows that Kylie has no more family. And Cormac was respected and known for his fine work. Nothing was stolen either," Roy concluded, then turned to go. "I will look around to see if I find something, but I doubt that. Keep your eyes open." With that he tapped the brim of his hat and walked out of the Doctor's office.

**Meanwhile at the Ponderosa…..**

Rhys was sitting at the porch of the house in a rocking chair. The weather had gotten remarkably colder in the past few days, but then it was the end of October. He had heard Ben say that it had been strangely warm for this time of the year. Now, as it seemed winter was finally drawing closer. The young man closed his eyes and simply enjoyed the warmth of the sun and the fresh air. The crutches were at his side and Hop Sing had brought him a cup filled to the brim with steaming hot coffee.

It was simply wonderful. The crisp air helped him to drive away the memories of the battle where the air had been thick with the smoke from the gunpowder and the copper smells of bloodied men. Rhys inhaled deeply and took a sip of the coffee. Suddenly he heard the distinct sounds of a horse coming closer. He looked up hoping to see Adam; the oldest of the Cartwright son's, who would maybe be able to give him something to read that was better than the local newspaper. He had already read through it three times.

However the man who rode into the yard was a stranger. He had short red hair and a small moustache. The nose above the broad mouth was crooked as if it had once been broken. The stranger looked around and stopped the horse when he spotted Rhys. The man dismounted and walked with slow distinct steps over to him. The young soldier put down the newspaper and put a hand on one of his crutches. He moved out of instinct; he could feel that this man meant trouble.

The moustached man stopped a few meters in front of him and scanned Rhys from top to toe. "I'm looking for Ben Cartwright. Do you know where he is?"

Rhys shook his head before he replied, "He rode away to check on his cattle. Ah don't know where he is."

The man nodded slowly. "You have some nasty scars there Mister….."

"Heavens. Mah name's Rhys Heavens," he replied truthfully. His name wasn't known. So it couldn't be any danger to use it.

"Where did you get these from?" The man questioned.

Rhys disliked him more and more with every second. "A gun backfired in mah face."

"I heard that happens sometimes, but I never seen the results of it. But… please excuse my curiosity…. your accent sounds quite strange. You aren't from this place, aren't you?"

Rhys felt the blood drain from his face and he clenched his jaws. Why hadn't he watched his accent? He needed to come up with a story and that fast. "Ya heard right. Ah'm not from here," he replied while he tried to come up with a believable story, "Ah used to live to the west of the mountains. Mah family owns a small farm there. Mah horse broke a leg, when Ah tried to find a way through the mountains. Ah hurt mah leg when Ah fell and the Cartwright's were kind enough to take me in."

The man nodded slowly then his hand brushed against the grip of his holstered colt. Suddenly the door to the kitchen burst open and Hop Sing came out carrying a tray with freshly baked cinnamon rolls.

"Here, Mista Heavens. Fresh cinnamon rolls. Family will have later, but they best when warm," he announced then placed the tray next to Rhys' cup with coffee. "Ah, good morning, Mista Aldwood. You want a cup of coffee?" asked the happy cook.

"No, no. Thank you. I have to leave now. I was actually looking for Ben, but Mister Heavens here, told me where I can find him."

Hop Sing nodded, then started to serve Rhys, who watched the man mount his horse with narrowed eyes. Had he touched his gun by accident? Or had Mister Aldwood just wanted to shoot him right where he had been sitting? Perhaps he was a good friend of Ben's and cautious of him; a young stranger, though a wounded one, that was obvious and of no threat.

"Mister Hop Sing? Do you know who thet was?"

"Yes. That was Mista Robert Aldwood; Owns small farm north of the Ponderosa."

"Thank you," Rhys mumbled then directed his thoughts back from the man to the wonderful smelling cinnamon rolls. "I must say these smell absolutely delicious," he stated and picked one up, putting his uneasy feelings aside, satisfied the man may have just been being neighbourly.

Robert Aldwood looked back over his shoulder and saw the Cartwright's Chinese fussing over the young man. He was absolutely sure now. The young Heavens had to be the soldier from the south. However he didn't believe Talbot's story. The South wouldn't send up a single soldier to scout the surroundings. Especially not such a young one. No, it was much more likely that Rhys was a deserter. Robert urged his horse into a quick canter, when he suddenly heard the sounds of a wagon coming closer. He pulled at the reigns and rode off the road. It was framed by bushes and trees; the vegetation would surely provide him the cover he needed. He didn't want to be seen by too many people. It was bad enough the cook had seen him, but he doubted that the Chinese would tell anyone of their encounter.

Robert battered his way through the forest until he reached the small clearing where his companions were waiting. There were five of them. One was holding his left arm groaning with pain from time to time.

"Quit your yammering Erik," Robert snarled when he dismounted.

"You wouldn't say that if your arm was broken," Erik groaned and looked up. The left part of the man's face was swollen and had dark purple colour. "And I still don't get why I can't go to the doctor. I could say I fell off a horse."

"I've already told you that it still would look suspicious, you idiot! And you don't even have a horse."

"I could have borrowed one," Erik replied with pained voice.

Robert shook his head, "You can go to the doctor as soon as we have gotten a hold of this soldier. He's at the Ponderosa nursing his wounds. I saw him. Unfortunately their Chinese cook came out and stopped me from taking him with me."

"Here take this. It will ease the pain." One of the other four men handed Erik a bottle with Whiskey.

"Thanks, Raymond."

Raymond simply nodded, then picked up a small twig and started to break it into tiny pieces. "I don't think it's right what you did with Cormac, Robert. It wasn't necessary to beat him up. He's the only one the little girl has left."

"Shut up Ray! You didn't stop us, so that makes you equally guilty. And besides, you agreed that we need to teach this southerner a lesson," Robert growled and sat down next to the other three, who nodded in approval.

Raymond swallowed and shook his head, "It still wasn't right."

"Whatever. No use crying over spilled milk."

"That's nothing to make fun of Robert. You maybe crippled or even killed him, when you hit him on the head with that stick!" Raymond stood up and so did Robert.

"I'm still the leader of this little party Raymond," he whispered, so that the others couldn't hear him, then added louder, "This soldier will pay for what his soldier boys did to my brother; killed him they did."

Robert's hand lay on the grip of his colt and Ray saw that the other man was tensing his muscles. He had no doubt that Robert would shoot him if the man deemed it necessary. He was so blinded with hatred. So Raymond nodded and sat down again. "Fine have it your way. At least let me splint Erik's arm, or he'll be in no state ta help us."

Robert nodded and also sat down. "Fine play doctor. We will get the 'Johnny Reb' as soon as he leaves the Ponderosa. We will keep watch day and night and as soon as he moves away from the house, we'll take him and then ride up into the mountains. No one will disturb us there."

**Back at the Ponderosa, later….**

Adam led the wagon into the yard and pulled at the reigns to stop the horses. Lorraine had given Sara and Kylie the day off school after what they had experienced. Upset children found it hard to learn, worried one's found it almost impossible. As far as Lorrain was concerned both girls were best with Adam, where he could keep them well occupied and their minds at rest, as well being far enough away from town and the talk of all the drama. Kylie had calmed down during the ride towards the Ponderosa and was leaning against Sara, who had put one arm around her friend. Once the wagon stopped, Black Knight came fawning out of the barn. With one mighty jump he got up into the wagon and immediately made his way over to his mistress and her friend. The big dog stopped in front of them and nudged Kylies cheek with his cold nose before starting to lick the dried tears off her face. A small giggle escaped the girl's mouth when Black Knight started to lick the side of her neck, but before he could cover the girl completely in slobber she was saved by Adam.

"Alright that's enough kisses from you Black Knight!" he announced and climbed down from the wagon. Then he placed Kylie on her feet and helped Sara down too. The dog followed them as they walked over to the veranda. Rhys was sitting outside sipping on a cup of coffee with a half-eaten cinnamon roll on a plate next to him.

"Is something wrong?" The young man asked when he noticed Kylie's red and puffy eyes.

Adam nodded, but then made a vague gesture towards the girls and Rhys gave a small knowing nod. Adam obviously didn't want to talk about it in front of the children. They both seemed quite upset. Sara and Kylie were both shooed inside, where they were greeted by the smell of the freshly baked cinnamon rolls. Sara's face lit up and she turned to her father.

"Dad, can… I mean… may I have a cinnamon roll?"

Adam smiled and nodded. "Yes, you may. Go and ask Hop Sing for a glass of milk too."

Sara grinned and ran off to the kitchen. Meanwhile Adam led Kylie over to the table, sat down on a chair and pulled her on his lap. Without a word he enveloped her into a hug and she wrapped her arms too around his neck. No tears escaped her eyes anymore, but her lower lip was trembling.

"Everything will be alright again, Kylie. You heard what the doctor said, didn't you?"

She nodded and a second later Sara burst into the room again carrying to large glasses filled with milk. Hop Sing followed her carrying a few plates with cinnamon rolls. The Chinese cook had realized the second Sara had come into the kitchen that something was wrong, but he hadn't asked her. He knew that he would get to know everything at the right time. He put down the tray and then poured Adam a fresh cup of coffee.

Adam mouthed a "Thank you," over Kylie's head then directed his attention back to the two little girls again. He knew that all Kylie needed right now, was to be close to someone she knew. He would tell the family later what had happened in Virginia City

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><p><strong>AN: A huge shoutout to Gaben who betaed this chapter so fast for me. <strong>

**To all of them who reviewed this story: Thanks for your kind comments and sorry that it took me so long to write this chapter. But one of my grand-parents passed away and I needed some time for myself. I hope I can update more regulary now and I also hope that you continue to read and review this story.**

**Thanks for your patience :)**


	14. A Fight in the Night

**Chapter 14: A fight in the night**

After Sara and Kylie had finished their small snack, they went out to play with Black Knight. The big dog had now healed completely, and kept the girls cheerfully busy. Adam sat down next to Rhys on the porch and took a sip of his coffee. The young soldier looked over at him and gave him a small nod, then continued to watch the girls play with the dog. They were both having a tug of war with their hairy protector, who was growling playfully.

When Black Knight started to shake the rope they were close to falling, but Sara quickly dug her heels into the ground and with Kylie's help she managed to drag the dog a few feet towards the barn. The child urged her friend to pull harder and slowly they dragged Black Knight inch after inch towards the barn.

"May Ah ask what happened in town?" Rhys asked Adam, once the children had disappeared into the barn.

Adam nodded and quickly told Rhys everything he knew before Sara and Kylie could come back out again. Just as he finished, frantic barking echoed out of the barn. Adam frowned, stood up and headed over to the barn. As he entered the building he immediately spotted Sara on the top of the ladder to the hayloft. Black Knight was standing at the bottom of it barking wildly.

"Hush, Black Knight!" Sara ordered then turned to her friend, "Come up. It's real comfortable up here."

Eagerly Kylie went to grab a rung of the ladder and climb up, but Black Knight grabbed the back of her dress and pulled her away. With a surprised yelp she stumbled backwards, and then fell on her backside. Adam sighed and rubbed both hand across his face. He knew that it was perfectly clear to his little daughter that the hayloft was out of bounds for her. She had already fallen down once. Fortunately Little Joe had taken down some hay the day before and she landed relatively softly.

"Sara!" he called and went over to the ladder. When she spotted him her face fell and she crawled back to the ladder. Adam crossed his arms and looked up at her. Slowly she made her way down the ladder again. Her father picked her off the ladder before she reached the ground and hoisted her over his left shoulder. Black Knight calmed down as soon as Sara was safe and sound. Adam turned to Kylie, with Sara still dangling like a sack of grain across his shoulder. "The hayloft is off limits, Kylie. You could fall down and get hurt, as Sara knows well from experience. However I suppose she didn't tell you. Is that right?"

Kylie nodded, but Sara objected, "I didn't get hurt, daddy, I just got a small lump on my forehead."

"You were lucky, that Little Joe had taken down some hay that day, young lady," Adam replied evenly then applied a quick sharp smack to the little bottom perched on his shoulder.

"OW! Dad!" Sara protested. Her father didn't listen to her objections and stood her down on her own feet again.

"You will not climb up there again, is that clear?" He warned, shaking a finger at her.

"Yes, sir," the small girl replied with a pout. She reached back with one hand and rubbed her backside still looking up at her father. The sting had faded, but she still thought it had been mean that he had smacked her for that.

Adam sighed and crouched down in front of her, "I just want to keep you and Kylie safe, sweetheart." He tapped her nose affectionately and it had the desired effect. She stopped pouting, "Now does anyone of you feel like coming to catch a few fish with me?"

Both girls nodded avidly and Adam clapped his hands. "Good, then I suggest you two go and change into some other clothes."

Completely forgotten about that she had been in trouble only a few seconds ago, Sara dragged her friend past Rhys into the house. Black Knight was about to follow them, but Adam held him back. He would just delay them and Adam wanted to keep them well occupied.

_**Later that night inside the house**_

Both Sara and Kylie were yawning and fighting to keep their eyes open and so was Adam. He had been successful in keeping them busy all day, even though it had included a small accident.

_**Flashback**_

Sara was standing at the side of the small creek. One hand clutched firmly around the branch of a small tree and with the other she was trying to reach her small bark-boat. It was stuck between two stones and Kylie was already thirty feet ahead of her. She had to get it out as quick as possible. She had already lost the last five races and now that she finally had made a good boat it got stuck between two darn stones. She stretched herself a bit further, but her fingertips were still a few inches away from her boat. Meanwhile Adam was trying to keep an eye on Kylie, who was running after her boat. The girls had made a ridiculous long course for their boats. Nearly a hundred yards and they had run that route up and down nearly a thousand times during the afternoon.

Suddenly Adam heard the distinct sound of a snapping twig followed by a loud sounds were accompanied by a shrill shriek of surprise. Concerned that she might not be able to get out of the water by herself Adam ran back and spotted his dripping wet daughter crawl out of the small creek. As soon as she had gotten out of the water she stomped her feet, picked up a stone and hurled it at her boat. Of course the stone hit it square in the middle and smashed it into pieces. At that she burst into tears of anger and frustration and sat down on the muddy ground.

Adam put his hands under her arms and stood her up again, "There, there. We'll make a new and better one, sweetheart," he soothed and started to wash the mud of her wet clothes. "Nice and clean again!" He stated, giving her a soft pat to the bottom.

Sara sniffled and scrubbed her nose. Somewhat consoled by her father's promise of a new boat.

"Boat racing ain't fun anymore. I wanna do something else."

"Don't be a spoiled sport, Sara. You have won five times in a row before and Kylie didn't stop playing with you, now did she?"

Sara huffed and crossed her arms. Adam just shook her head and took her hand in his, "Lets get you into some dry clothes. Or you'll get cold." He said and led her over to Sport, who was nibbling on some grass nearby. Adam had packed some extra clothes. He knew from experience that Sara had the habit to get dirty or wet. So each time they went out on a picnic, he packed some extra clothes for her.

Just as Sara had finished re-dressing herself, Kylie came back to them carrying her boat with a huge proud grin, but when she friend's wet hair, her smile immediately faded.

"Are ya alright?" She asked with worried voice.

"Yes, I jist fell into the water," Sara replied and rubbed her hair with the towel.

"I think we better start to move back home. Hop Sing will sure to have the dinner finished soon," Adam said and before the children could object he put a hand on each of their mouths. "No! It's not up to discussion. We've had a nice day together, but now we have to get back."_And besides I'm too tired to chase you up and down the creek,_ he added in thoughts. It still baffled him sometimes just how much energy children had when they were playing.

_**End Flashback**_

Rhys was watching the yawning children with amusement. Adam seemed equally tired, but it wasn't as obvious as it was with the girls. Sara's head was bobbing up and down over her plate, while she desperately tried to keep herself awake until everyone else was finished and she could have her desert. Once Sara was close to dipping her face in the remnants of her dinner Adam relented. He went to fetch the desert for the children. As soon as Kylie and Sara were finished they were put to bed.

The rest of the family waited until Adam returned until they continued with desert. Rhys remained with them pondering about his meeting with Robert Aldwood. It had scared him and now he cursed his recklessness. He shouldn't have gone outside. Rhys wasn't sure if Robert had just been a concerned neighbour, or if there was something more. However the encounter had made him realize that he was a danger to this family. He shouldn't stay here any longer. The Cartwright's would get into serious trouble with the law, if someone found out that they took care of a deserter of the south. He figured it best to leave tonight.

"Mister Cartwright?" he asked and looked over to Ben, who quickly ceased his conversation with Hoss.

"Yes?"

"May Ah borrow some paper and a pencil? Ah would like to write a letter to a friend in San Francisco."

"Of course. Just go ahead and take some from my desk," he replied.

"Thanks…. Ah think, Ah should go to bed now too. The day has been more tiring for me, than Ah thought it would be," Rhys lied without hesitation and grabbed his crutches. He would leave early; before morning light, while they were all asleep. Though, Rhys couldn't leave without leaving a message and thanking them for their help.

Ben nodded his approval. He hadn't liked it that Rhys had been hobbling around with the crutches all day. The young soldier was close to Little Joe's age and he couldn't help but feel responsible for him. Rhys limped into Ben's study, and then headed up to his room with a pencil and a sheet of paper. Once he was inside the guestroom he closed the door and let out a small sigh. His leg didn't hurt very much anymore. The skin had healed during the last week, but he knew that the muscle was still damaged. He sunk down on the bed, placed the paper on his thigh and started to write.

_**Three o'clock in the morning **_

Rhys stood up without a sound and quickly dressed himself. The letter, which he had written earlier, was placed on the bed. Next to it he placed the sabre he had taken from the dead Union-Lieutenant. He gulped and shook his head, when the unwelcome images returned. He shook his head to drive them away and shouldered his rifle. With the bayonet strapped to his belt, he was ready to leave. He heaved a deep sigh, and then opened the door. It didn't feel right to sneak off like this; he felt like a thief in the night.

Rhys looked out into the corridor but no one was there. Letting out a small relived breath, he sneaked over to the chairs. Twice the floorboards creaked under his weight and he froze, even holding his breath, listening after the slightest sign that one of the Cartwright's had woken up from the sound. The stairs weren't a problem. He had walked them up and down enough to know which steps would creak and which wouldn't. Once he had gotten down he hurried, as fast as his leg allowed him to the door and out of the house. He didn't notice the little girl standing at the top of the stairs looking after him while she was trying to rub the sleepiness out of her eyes.

Sara didn't realize in the first moments, that it was Rhys who was walking out of the door. And once she had managed to work that out in her sleepy condition, he was already gone. The girl walked yawning back into her room and grabbed a pair of overalls and her slippers, and then she headed down to the big room. After she finished dressing herself she put her feet into her slippers and grabbed a small oil lamp. The lamp was quickly lit with the matches Sara found next to the fireplace. The child took a hold of it and headed out of the house. She was curious where Rhys was going. He had taken a rifle with him too. So, Sara was sure he wasn't going to the outhouse. First she didn't detect him, but then she spotted a movement just at the side of the barn and she went after him. She shivered with the cold, but she shrugged it off. Soon she would return into the house with Rhys and then she would be nice and warm again.

Rhys didn't look back. He had to get an as big a distance as possible between him and the Cartwright's before dawn.

_**In the woods**_

Robert had waited patiently. He knew that the young rebel soldier would have to leave the Ponderosa someday, and that someday he would get his revenge. Suddenly he spotted a small light move towards him. Soon he could make out the feature of one of the children. Her eyes were fixed on something in front of her. Robert grabbed the handle of his colt and looked around in the dark.

A twig snapped to his right and he spun around and stared into the darkness. It only took him a few seconds to make out the shape of the southerner. He was walking straight towards him. All Robert had to do now was to wait.

Sara was cold by now. She raised the lamp high over her head and looked back in the direction of the house. She could barely make it out in the darkness. All of sudden she heard the howling of a wolf and stopped dead in her tracks. She didn't want to go any further. Images of the wolf attack flooded back into her mind.

"Rhys!" she called with quavering voice.

The young soldier spun around and immediately spotted the little child behind him. "Sara! What are ya'll doin' here? Go back to bed!"

"No, I want ya to come back with me. Why are ya goin? And ya are my friend. Don't ya wanna say good-bye? I thought ya were my friend. Ya can't go, ya have ta tell daddy where ya goin, he will take you, ya gotta come back," she objected with a hurt voice and flinched when she heard the wolf again. When Rhys saw how scared she was, he went to limp over to her, but froze when he heard the sounds of footsteps coming closer. He turned around just in time to see the drawn gun aimed at his chest.

"You stay right where you are!" Robert snarled then added, "Mortimer grab the girl!"

Sara panicked and turned to run, but she didn't get very far. She stumbled and fell heavily to the ground, skinning her knee in the process. The oil lamp fell against a rock and broke. The flames immediately ignited the spilled oil causing a darting flame to well up in front of the frightened child. Before she was able to get up again two strong hands grabbed her and hoisted her up in the air. A second later she found herself across the shoulder of a large man. All her kicking and wriggling was of no use. Mortimer simply pinned her legs with one arm and ignored that she was drumming her fists against his back. However he couldn't ignore it when Sara bit him. He yelped of the sudden pain and stumbled over a small rock. He didn't fall, but was putt down on his knees.

"Take her off me!"

"Can't you handle a child for god's sake?" Robert asked, annoyed then looked back at Rhys who had grabbed his rifle with one hand. "One more move and your dead, southerner. Drop your gun and turn around!" he ordered quickly. Rhys hesitated. It didn't seem right, that he would give up without a fight while Sara still was holding on to Mortimer's back with her teeth. His grip around the rifle tightened, but then he stopped. He couldn't die now. He had to get to Armelle. He pushed the leather strap, which had secured the gun to his back, over his shoulder and the rifle fell to the ground. Then he turned around and raised his hands over his head. He would try to get them out of this mess, but not yet. He had to wait for a better opportunity; one where at least Sara could get away safely; he could manage the rest himself, he hoped. A second after he had finished these thoughts a searing pain exploded at the back of his head and the world around him disappeared.

Robert quickly went over to Mortimer who was still trying to detach the girl from his back. He grabbed her around the waist and yanked her of his comrade in one swift motion. As soon as Sara realized that she had lost her grip she let out a horrified scream. Robert quickly covered her mouth with his hand, but she only used the opportunity to bite him too.

"Damn you, you little…" he growled and slapped her face with his free hand. It was a hard and uncontrolled blow. Sara lost her grip once again and fell to the ground. The whole left part of her face felt as if it was on fire. Tears trickled down her cheeks and she was feeling dizzy. Before she could react she was picked up again and found herself face to face with Robert Aldwood.

"Now you listen good, little girl; if you make one more sound or try to run away, I will kill that friend of yours and then you. Clear?"

Sara nodded petrified.

"Mortimer! Hurry we have to get away! Get the southerner on your horse. I'll take the brat." Robert looked over to the house and saw that a lamp had been lit in the one of the upper windows. He helped Mortimer to tie Rhys onto his horse, then he placed Sara on his own. A few seconds later they were gone and only the remnants of the oil lamp remained on the ground.

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><p><strong>So for once I was able to update quickly, and I hope you appreciate this chapter. Thanks to everyone who reviewed this story. It relly helps me to continue with this little tale.<strong>

**And as usual I owe Gaben a big THANKS! for correction all my little mistakes and improving this story. Her comments and corrections have helped me a lot to improve my writing.**


	15. An unexpected Ally

**An unexpected Ally**

_**~At the Ponderosa Big House~**_

When Adam heard Sara scream he was out of his bed in an instant. He grabbed his gun and hurried over to her room. A very drowsy looking Kylie was sitting in his daughter's bed rubbing her eyes, but there was no trace of Sara.

"Kylie! Where's Sara?"

"Uh? Is she gone?" she asked and looked around.

Adam ran over to the stairs and was down in the big room in an instant. Kylie got out of the bed and out of the room. Little Joe was close to running into her, when he hurried out on the hallway. Ben took Kylie aside and led her gently back into Sara's room.

"Where's Sara, Mister Cartwright?" she questioned in a timid voice.

"I don't know, Kylie. But we will find her again. Don't worry. Now stay in bed." Ben said with gentle, yet firm voice. He was worried. He had also heard Sara's scream and it had been cut off abruptly. Kylie nodded and allowed Ben to sit her down on the side of the bed.

Adam had returned again and had hurried back into his room. A few seconds he came out again fully dressed and with the gun belt around his hip. He headed into the guestroom and emerged with a folded piece of paper in one hand and Rhys' sabre in the other.

"Rhys is gone too! He left a letter and his sabre is on the bed. Here!" Adam tossed the folded piece of paper to Ben, who caught it in mid-air. "I go and saddle the horses. And when I catch him…" the oldest of the Cartwright sons left the sentence unfinished.

"Did Mister Heavens take Sara away?" came a small voice from Sara's room. Kylie had gotten up again and was standing in the door frame watching Ben with big eyes.

Ben didn't answer instead he unfolded the piece of paper.

_Dear Mister Cartwright;_

_I am sorry that left like this. But I could not stay any longer in your house. I endanger your family with my presence. A man called Robert Aldwood saw me today. This encounter made me realize that it is time for me to go. I will try to find my baby sister Armelle in San Francisco. I left you the sabre as payment; due to the fact that I have no money to repay your kindness.  
>As soon as I have found my sister I will come and visit you to thank you properly. For now please accept my gratitude.<em>

_Yours truly_

_Rhys Heavens_

"I don't think so Kylie," Ben replied when he had read through the letter, then called. "Hoss!"

"Yes, Pa?"

"Please look after Kylie. I will help Adam search for Sara." He said and went back into his room to get himself dressed. Ben was sure Hoss would be able to calm Kylie down and he needed to go after Adam to stop him from jumping to the wrong conclusions and doing something stupid.

_**~ In The Forest ~**_

Sara sniffled and scrubbed her nose with the sleeve of her nightshirt. She flinched when the fabric touched her face. Her nose and the right part of her face were tender and bruised. She hadn't realised how hard Robert had hit her.  
>They had already been walking for hours through the forest. Robert always kept an eye on her and she hadn't tried to escape a single time. She hadn't forgotten his threat about killing Rhys. Suddenly she felt a drop on her forehead and looked up in the sky. Another raindrop landed on her left cheek and trickled down. Soon it was pouring down and Sara was soaked to her skin within a few seconds. Now she felt for the first time that she had dressed herself into too little clothes. A nightshirt and a pair of flap trousers were not enough to stop the chill of a late October night, especially if it was raining too. Neither Mortimer nor Robert paid any attentions to her shivering and an hour later she barely felt her hands or feet anymore. She had been cold before, but never like this. Back when she had lived on the streets, she had often been able to sneak into a cellar and cover herself up with some old dirty blankets.<p>

Suddenly she spotted the flickering of a fire and let out a small sigh of relief. Maybe they would rest there. A group of four men were sitting around the fire. They had moved their camp under an overhanging cliff.

"We've got him!" Robert announced and waved Mortimer to the front. Rhys was still unconscious, but when Mortimer dragged him down from the horseback and he hit the ground he let out a soft groan.

Raymond jumped to his feet and stared at the small figure sitting on Robert's horse. "Is that Adam's daughter?" he asked with shaking voice. The small child was dripping wet and shaking with cold. "WHY THE HELL DID YOU KIDNAP A CHILD? SHE'S GOT NOTHING TO DO WITH THIS!" He yelled.

"Quit yelling! They could hear us!" Robert snarled, "And the reason why I took her too, is because she saw us."

Raymond headed over to Sara and held out his arms towards her. "Don't be afraid. I won't hurt you," he said gently. She flinched and went to jump of the horse, but when Robert directed an icy glare in her direction she stopped in the middle of her movements. Raymond followed the child's terrified line of sight and his gaze fell on Robert. He clenched his jaws and plucked Sara slowly and gently out of the saddle and carried her over to the fire.

"Now look at him. First he plays doctor for Erik and now he's playing nanny for the little brat." Robert laughed.

Raymond ignored him and sat down on a rock near to fire. He stood Sara down in front of him and took one of her hands in his. Her fingers felt cold as ice. He spotted the large bruise forming on the girl's face. By tomorrow she would sport a shiner of a black eye. He put a hand under her chin and turned her head so the light of the fire lit up her face. There seemed to be no other injury. He threw an angry glare at Robert. How could he do something like this to a small child?

"We need to get ya out of these wet clothes, little one. Otherwise ya will get sick," he said gently.

Sara shook her head and tried to pull herself free. Tears formed in her eyes and stifled sob escaped her throat. As soon as the sound came over from lips, she threw a panicked glance over to Robert, but the man paid no attention to her. He had tied Rhys to a tree and was standing in front of the young soldier. A broad and evil smile was playing on his lips while he looked down on the tied up man. Raymond recognized Sara's fear and pulled her automatically closer to him. What had he done? How hadn't he been able to see Robert's madness? And why had he let Robert persuade him to take part in this campaign of vengeance?

"Shhh, I will take you home again. I promise!" he whispered. Sara looked up at him. Fear, surprise and a small amount of hope seemed to waver in her eyes.

"P-p-p-promise?" she stammered hopefully. For the first time she allowed herself to look closer at the man. He was square-jawed and had a short beard. His eyes were of a warm brown and awakened her trust. He had a totally different charisma than the other men.

"Yes, I promise. My name is Raymond, but you can call me Ray," he presented himself with hushed voice.

"I'm Sara…" she replied and looked as if she wanted to say something more, but broke off.

"Sara. Do you think you can take off these wet clothes? I don't want you to get sick. You can have my coat."

"Okay…" the child said hesitantly, then added, "But don't peek."

"I won't," Raymond promised. "Let me get two blankets so I can cover you up. You can meanwhile try to warm yourself up at the fire."

Sara nodded and huddled close to the flames. Raymond seemed like a nice man. He had promised her to take her back to her father. Cautiously she eyed the other five men. There were Robert and Mortimer. They looked both quite similar; Big and Mean! The one who was sitting left to her had his right arm splinted and in a sling. His face was pained and full of bruises. The man to her right was quite skinny and had protruding ears. He was poking the fire with a stick and tried not to look at her. The fifth man was sitting on the opposite site of the fire. He had flaming red curly hair, a moustache and very bushy eyebrows. During her silent examination of her captors, her fingers and toes had started to get warm again. Suddenly she felt a tap on her shoulder and looked up. Raymond had returned with the promised blankets.

"Wait a moment. I've got an idea!" He said and folded one of the blankets in half. Then he pulled out a small knife and sliced a whole in the middle of it. Now she could wear it as a poncho. He led her away from the fire, so she could get the privacy she needed, then he held up the other blanket in front of her. She quickly pulled off her clothes and wrapped herself in the woollen blanket. After she had dried herself Raymond slipped the other blanket over her head and watched her head pop out of the whole. Then he pulled of his belt and secured the blanket around her hips with it. After all that he pulled of his coat and wrapped Sara into it.

"Are you feeling a bit better now?" he asked gently and led her back to the fire. The girl nodded. The inside of the coat had been made of the wool of a sheep, and still contained the warmth of its former bearer. Raymond sat down next to the fire and watched the child head over to Rhys. She covered him with the other blanket Raymond had given to her, then headed back to him.

"Can he come and sit next to the fire too? He's cold," she asked.

"Of cour…"

"No!" Robert interrupted. "The Southerner will stay right where he is."

"Robert, he won't last the night if you don't let him come closer to the fire. It's too cold." Raymond objected. Robert didn't even respond. He just sat down next to the fire and threw him a warning glare. Raymond ignored it and looked over to Erik.

"Erik? Are your extra clothes still in your saddle-bag?"

Erik simply nodded, then asked, "What are ya goin' to do?"

"Giving someone some needed cover." Raymond replied and went over to the horse Erik had borrowed from Mortimer. He took out some clothes and a woollen blanket, then headed over to Rhys who was leaning tied up against a tree. The rain hadn't reached him, as he too was sitting under the overhanging cliff. Raymond crouched down in front of him and handed him the clothes and the blanket. He noticed how young the Southerner looked and how badly scarred he really was. The whole left part of his face had been transformed into a mass Thick and purple scars. He shuddered and looked away, but not before being caught by the icy gaze of Rhys' remaining eye.

"You have to get the little girl, out of here. Please, she's done nothing wrong," whispered Rhys, shivering with the cold.

"Shhh, there are listeners here, boy," cautioned Ray.

"Who was the man that caught me?" Rhys asked with unsteady voice.

"That would be me!" Robert stated, then turned to Raymond. "What the hell do you think you're doing? Have you already forgotten our little chat?"

"Ya won't be able to have any fun with him if he freezes to death this night," Raymond replied.

Robert's fist struck him hard in the stomach and he doubled over with pain. The blow had come unexpectedly and he had had not time to prepare himself. The farmer grabbed Raymond by the shoulder's and straightened him again, then hissed, "I know you disagree with me Ray. And if you don't stop trying to trick me like this, I just might shoot you. And who will take care of little Sara then?" Before Raymond could object Robert stole the colt out of Ray's holster. "You won't need this anymore." He tucked the gun into his belt and sat down next to the fire again.

Raymond was still gasping for air. Suddenly someone tapped his thigh and he looked down. Two big green eyes were staring at him.

"Are ya hurt?" Sara asked with small voice.

"No, no. It jist surprised me a bit," he replied trying to keep a steady voice. Sara kept looking up at him, then glanced over to Rhys. The young man wasn't struggling against the ropes which secured him to the tree; instead he tried to cover himself up as well as he could with tied up hands. Sara headed over to him and helped him to cover himself. Afterwards she snuggled down next to him and gave him a quick peck to the cheek.

"Thank ya!" Rhys whispered.

Raymond gave a curt nod, then went back to the fire. He needed to get some sleep. Tomorrow he would try to free them. As if Robert had been able to read his thoughts he looked up, then glanced over at Erik. "You have the first watch. Wake me up in two hours."

Erik nodded and wrapped himself into the remaining blanket, but not without giving Raymond a reproachful look. He would probably get cold tonight, but then it was Ray had given his second blanket to the wounded soldier.

_**~ Back at the Ponderosa ~**_

Ben had barely been able to convince Adam that they needed to prepare themselves, before running off into the night looking for the child. If they didn't, the cold would soon force them to go back home and then they had to start all over again. He'd also was the voice of reason, concerning Rhys, convincing Adam that most likely the lad did not orchestrate Sara's disappearance. However, all the Cartwright men's instincts told them that Sara and Rhys were together and while they hoped not in danger, common sense told them otherwise. Sara had definitely screamed, and neither she nor Rhys had returned, then there was the very fact that Rhys was a Rebel deserter.

Black Knight was pacing up and down on the yard anxious to get after his mistress. Adam had ordered him to stay put, while he was getting some warmer clothes. A few minutes later Adam, Hoss, Ben and Little Joe rode out into the night. Kylie would stay with Hop Sing in the house.

Black Knight ran ahead with the nose close to the ground. It was still pouring down and they had to watch out. They could not ride too fast, otherwise the risk for the horses would be too great. Suddenly they heard Black Knight bark and Adam gave Sport a light kick. The horse immediately responded by taking off in a canter. The dog was standing over the broking pieces of a lamp. Adam jumped off Sport's saddle and knelt down next to Black Knight.

"Good dog!" he praised and picked up the base of the oil lamp. The oil had spilt and burned a small part of the ground, before the rain had extinguished the fire. Ben and Little Joe caught up to him and also dismounted.

"Did you find something?" Little Joe asked and knelt down next to his older brother.

"A broken oil lamp. She must have taken it with her, when she went out." Adam replied. Hoss examined the ground in the meantime. He could make out several sets of boot-prints. Two larger pairs, a smaller one and some which were from a child. Sara must have come this way. There were also some hoof prints.

"Adam! She must have met somebody here. Look at these marks. They're made from at least two men." suggested Hoss.

"I don't think it was a planned meeting." said Adam. "There's signs of a scuffle."

"You're right," said Ben. "I think Sara found Rhys, followed him, chased him, and then someone found them. Neither Rhys or Sara had a horse."

The oldest of the Cartwright sons went over to his father and Hoss and also looked at the boot-prints. "You're right. But I rather think it were three men. Look the two bigger ones aren't the same." Adam stated. Since they had ridden out in the night, he tried to quench the overwhelming fear which threatened to take over. He needed to think clearly before he acted, otherwise he wouldn't be able to find his little girl again. He took a deep breath and called Black Knight over to them. The dog sniffed at the hoof prints and the boots and looked over to Adam. When he made a gesture the dog took off at lightning speed into the darkness.

They mounted the horses again and rode after the dog. Whoever had taken Sara had ridden in a wide semi-circle around their house and then headed up into the mountains. About one or two hours later they caught up to Black Knight. The dog was running back and forth at the other side of a small creek. He looked like he had lost the trail. When he heard the sounds of hooves coming closer he raised his head and looked over at them. A whimpering sound escaped the animal's throat, then it continued its search.

"It's as I feared. The rain must have washed away the scent." Ben said with low voice. "We should find a shelter and continue to look out for her tomorrow. We won't be able to find her until the sun comes out."

Adam shook his head and crossed the creek. "The trails will have been washed away completely by tomorrow."

"Son… you won't find her this night and she will survive until tomorrow. This isn't the first time, she disappeared and until she came to our farm she lived on the streets; she's tough, Adam, she's a survivor."

Ben put a hand on Adam's shoulder. Adam clenched the reigns and closed his eyes for a few seconds.

"Alright… we'll look for a shelter." He finally conceded.

* * *

><p><strong>A shoutout to gaben who betaed this chapter for me. She's really fast and I can say that I'm really happy to get my chapters back within a day or even less. I don't know how she manages to do that. Anyway THANKS GABEN!<strong>

**To all those who have read this little story... I'm sorry that it took me so long to update, but I had a really bad case of flue, which turned into a nasty pneumonia, but now it's already much, much better. So I hope you can understand, why I wasn't able to write the past two weeks.**

**I hope you enjoyed this little chapter and if you drop me a line I would be really, really, really happy.**


	16. Tracks and Trails

**Chapter 16 : Tracks and Trails.**

_**On the road from Virginia City.**_

Lorraine Evans was just steering her little buggy out from the crossroads and onto the road towards the Ponderosa, when she spotted three soldiers coming from the opposite direction and enter as well. Two of them looked exactly identical. She shook her head and directed her gaze back onto the road ahead as she passed them. She wanted to bring Sara and Kylie some of the schoolwork and find out how they were doing. One of the soldiers rode up to her side and tapped the brim of his hat.

"Ma'am. I am Lieutenant John Freeman and the twins behind me are Edward and James Dunbar. I'm looking for the way to the Ponderosa. Do you know if this is the right way?" he asked in a friendly and polite manner.

Lorrain stopped the buggy and waited for the soldier to stop his mount beside her. "I'm just heading over to the Ponderosa Mister Freeman. You may accompany me if you wish." She replied and looked at him. He looked to be about 25 years or a bit younger. His hair was dark brown and he had a three-day-beard.

"Thank you Ma'am. I will be glad to keep you company. May I drive your buggy for you?" He grinned and waved to his comrades to follow him.

Lorrain nodded. The young soldier tethered his mount to the back of the buggy, then smiled as he climbed up next to Lorrain and took the reins from her offered hand. They travelled in silence for a few seconds until Lorraine's curiosity got the better of her.

"May I ask you what business you have at the Ponderosa?"

John nodded, "Yes. A few soldiers who are to guard a silver delivery heard someone talk in a saloon that a spy from the south was using the Ponderosa as headquarters. I don't know why they reported it actually; fool's talk if you ask me and a complete waste of time of sending us up here to check it out. But the colonel is a very careful man. So we will just ride up to the Ponderosa have a quick look and talk to Mr Cartwright and then head back to the fort."

Lorraine looked at him appalled. "You mean the army thinks… the Cartwright's are protecting a Southern Spy?" she asked incredulously.

"No, Ma'am. We don't really believe it. We are simply checking a rumour, that's all." He explained calmly.

Lorraine nodded and fixed her gaze on the road again. The buggy was jolting as it rolled over a few larger rocks. The lieutenant clicked his tongue and slapped the back of the horses gently with the reins. The animals broke into a quick canter, while the two soldiers followed.

"May I ask what your name is Ma'am?" John questioned and looked over at her.

"I'm Lorraine Evans, Lieutenant Freeman. I'm the teacher in town and just before you ask. One of the children's father got involved in a fight and got badly injured. The Cartwright's are taking care of Kylie now. I just wanted to head out and see how they are doing." She explained.

The Lieutenant nodded and they continued their way to the Ponderosa once again in comfortable silence. As the buggy rolled into the yard of the Ponderosa, Lorrain noticed the silence. No children were around and all of the Cartwright's seemed to be gone. Lieutenant Freeman helped her down from the buggy, while Edward and James dismounted. Lorraine then quickly made her way over to the house and knocked at the door. Soon enough she could hear the sound of small feet coming closer and then the door swung open. Kylie looked up at her and a small smile spread on her face, recognizing her teacher.

"Hello Kylie! How are you feeling?" She asked and stroked the child's head softly.

"I'm really worried… Sara disappeared and all of the Cartwright's went to look for her and now…" she sniffed. Lorraine could only imagine how Kylie must be feeling. First her dad had gotten severely injured and now her friend had disappeared. She knelt down in front of the child and caught Kylie in a warm hug. The little girl sniffled and soon she was openly crying.

"Shhh, shhh, shhh. Everything will be alright." Lorraine shushed and kissed the top her Kylie's head. The small girl only started to cry harder and Lorraine stood up, taking Kylie with her, supporting the child's backside with one arm, while she steadied her with another hand on her back.

Lieutenant John rubbed the back of his head, feeling a little uneasy, now about his mission. It was obvious that this family had some problems; however he had to follow his orders. A few seconds later, Hop Sing came bustling out of the kitchen.

"No more tears little missy. Adam soon come back with Sara." He said soothingly then turned towards the soldiers. "Mista Cartwright not here. Looking for little granddaughter, Sara."

"Well… it was reported that the Cartwright's were hiding a spy from the south." John felt the idea was preposterous. He'd heard of the Cartwright's of the Ponderosa. The army had bought horses from them and the men had made a fair deal. However, the rumour needed to be either confirmed or dismissed; those were his orders. "We would like to have a quick look around the house. Then we'll head off again." John stated slowly, careful to keep a neutral voice. The tears of the small child touched him. He had two children on his own. Twins to be exactly, one girl and a boy and he couldn't bear to see them crying either. "It won't take long and afterwards we will help to search for the missing child, Sara."

"Hmmm, I think Mista soldier should wait until Mista Cartwright come home." Hop Sing said warily.

"I'm sorry, but we've got orders from the army, sir. We do have the right to enter this house and I would rather enter it with your cooperation than without it." John stated firmly.

"Then you come in." Hop Sing waved the soldiers inside. The Chinese cook hoped that there would be no traces left after Rhys. They had burned his uniform and given him some civilian clothes; Joe's had fitted him well. Plus the young southerner had taken his gun with him. The soldiers were very thorough. They checked everything, but did it in a very discreet manner, without upturning anything or making a mess.

"Lieutenant John! I think I've found something!" One of the soldiers called from upstairs. John gulped and shook his head. _God damned!_ _I had hoped to find nothing._ He thought and headed up the stairs. Edward came out of a room holding Rhys' sabre in his hands. "It's a Union weapon sir. I think from an officer or a Lieutenant."

John took it in his hands and examined it carefully. "Well… this most certainly did not belong to a spy of the Confederates. Mister! I have a few questions for you." The Lieutenant walked down the stairs and over to the Chinese cook. He felt very uneasy about this. While he had hoped not to find a spy on these premises he didn't want to pursue a deserter, either. He had taken part in a small skirmish once and that had been enough. Fortunately his father was a colonel and had managed to get him a post back here. However, now he needed to concentrate on his task. "Where did this sabre come from?"

Hop Sing was unsure of what to do. On one hand he considered the Cartwright's as his family, but if he didn't help the military they could get into serious trouble. "A man showed up here. He had badly wounded leg. We took care of him. He say he want to look for little sister. But then he went away and little missy also gone now. Mista Cartwright looking for her now!"

John nodded. For a second he thought about asking further questions, but then shrugged it off. "It was of course your Christian duty to take care of a wounded person, but you should have informed the military, that you had a deserter in your house. I do not like it, but I have to report this to my superiors."

"Lieutenant… well how do we know these people knew it was a deserter? Maybe he was wearing civilian clothes. At least that's what I would do if I run off." James offered then winked at his lieutenant. He knew exactly what John was thinking.

The lieutenant looked at Hop Sing. You said this man left, to search for his sister. Did mister Cartwright's granddaughter, follow him?"

"I think so," interrupted Kylie. "She just wanted to say goodbye, but maybe she followed him too far, and now... and now... she's lost."

Lorrain patted Kylie's back, trying to calm the child, "Shh now they will find her," she promised.

"I say if we go and look for the little girl, we may even find the man who owns this sabre. Maybe he isn't even a deserter. Maybe he quit the military legally and in full honour." Edward suggested. He too felt for the family, but they couldn't just go off and search for the child and belay their original orders without a good reason.

John gave them a grateful nod. "I think you're right. The best way to find the owner of this sabre is to find the daughter of Mister Cartwright; we can help both our causes." He turned towards Hop Sing again. "In which direction did the Cartwright's go?"

"They ride towards mountains. But Hop Sing not know where they are now."

Lieutenant John nodded and absentmindedly rubbed the stubbles on his chin. "Edward, James… try to find their trail. We will try to catch up to them. If our man is not there, I'm sure the Cartwright's can offer an explanation."

Kylie watched the rest of the conversation with interest. She felt very warm and safe in Miss Evans arms, but now she felt how her teacher's back go rigid. "If Sara is missing, I want to go with you and help." Lorraine declared, putting Kylie down on her own feet again.

Kylie held onto the teachers hand and tried to scrub away the last traces of her tears. She also wanted to help. The Cartwright's had already left her behind. This time she would follow them! "I also wanna help." She piped up and gave the Lieutenant an angry glare, when he snorted. "I can ride. Adam… I mean Mister Cartwright taught me to ride on Moci an' I can forecast the weather, my uncle taught me that."

"Such a search is not for little girls. You will stay in this house. Otherwise you might get lost too!" John stated firmly. Kylie raised her head high and scowled at the Lieutenant with all the bravado she could muster.

"Ya ain't my daddy, sir. So I am not gonna do what yer tellin' me." She replied with steady voice, sounding much braver, than she actually was.

"He may not be your daddy, Kylie, but your behaviour, young lady is rude. The lieutenant is right. You must stay at the house." Lorraine interrupted before John could say anything. Kylie threw her an angry glare and freed her hand from the teachers. She would follow them. Whether they wanted it or not. Lorraine turned to the Lieutenant and rubbed her hands nervously against the sides of her dress. "If you could wait for a few seconds I will make my horse ready."

John shook his head. "If you apologize my bluntness, but the mountains ain't the place for a lady either."

Lorraine blushed with anger and stepped close up to the man. "I will follow you whether you like it or not. Sara is one of my pupils and she had already had enough trouble in her life. No pig-headed soldier of the Union will stop me from going to search for her."

The twins, Edward and James, snickered at the verbal encounter. The petite woman was certainly an impressive person, when she got riled up. However they had no time to waste, so Edward cleared his throat to get their attention. "The longer we're arguin' the longer it will take us to find them. If Miss Evans wants to accompany us, she will do it as far as I can guess. She seems quite determined."

"Damn right I am!" She stated, then blushed in embarrassment when she realized she had just cursed. Kylie stared at her teacher with her mouth wide open. She had never seen her like this. She sure had a temper.

"Alright! You can come with us. But the child stays here!" Lieutenant John grumbled.

"Hey! I wanna come too!" Kylie protested, but was silenced with a firm swat to her backside.

"No more protesting little missy." Hop Sing scolded. "Big boys do searching. Little girls should stay in house and do as they're told." The child rubbed her backside, a pout forming on her face. She would go after them. As soon as she could get the chance she would mount Moci and ride after them. She couldn't t just sit in the house while the others were looking for her friend.

Several minutes later the soldiers and Lorraine had mounted their horses and rode out of the yard; heading towards the mountains.

_**Meanwhile up in the Mountains**_

Adam had not been able to close his eyes for a second during the whole night. The huge black dog hadn't either been able to sleep. Black Knight padded up and down at the entrance of the small cave, eager to continue the search for his mistress.

The sun had barely risen when they continued their search. However they found nothing. Even Black Knight's sensitive nose could find no trail.

"Okay so the trail stops here. They have either covered their tracks or we have missed an important sign," said Adam.

"Well they couldn't have gone through the caves, there are no signs there. I think we should double back to the creek bed; Try going east from there, we might just pick it up the trail again," suggested Hoss.

"Maybe we should split up," suggested Ben. "You two go east, well head off in the other direction. If neither of have found any sign after twenty minutes, we'll re-group again. If you do find something fire your pistol, and we'll get to each other."

"Good Idea, Pa."

"We'll find her son, I don't think Rhys would hurt her."

"I don't either, but those other tracks, well..." Adam stopped and tried not to imagine his greatest fear.

"Stay focused, son, we'll find her," reassured Ben.

"Thanks Pa."

The four Cartwright's mounted up and headed back toward the trail where they had last found tracks; hopefully the morning dew hadn't washed any signs away.

All four rode off in silence.

_**At the camp of the kidnappers**_

The blankets and the clothes Ray had given her had kept her warm during the night. She had tucked herself close to Rhys during the night trying to keep him as warm as possible. Her head rested on the young man's chest and she was still snoozing comfortably, when Rhys was suddenly dragged away and she was jolted awake. For a moment she was confused when she looked around, but then she remembered what had happened the night before. She reached up to touch her face and felt it was still swollen and it hurt when she touched it. Robert bent down and grabbed Rhys' collar with both hands. He reeked of some strong brew and Sara wrinkled her nose.

"What are ya doin' to him?" Sara questioned when she spotted Rhys' rifle lying abandoned on the ground. Robert didn't answer he simply yanked Rhys up, then punched him square in the face. The young soldier was flung back on the ground and Robert was close to falling too in his drunk state. However he managed to keep his balance.

"Ya will pay for what yer fellers did to mah brother?" he slurred and bent down to grab Rhys again.

"No, stop it!" Sara yelled and jumped at him. She kicked him against the shin and earned a curse and a hard slap. For the second time in less than twelve hours she was on the ground holding her bruised cheek. Tears were forming in her eyes and she tried to stifle the sob. Suddenly she felt two strong hands on her shoulder, which helped her up. Sara didn't dare to look up at first, but when she recognized Ray's boots she gathered enough courage to give him a pleading look. "Stop it." She pleaded. "He's hurtin' my friend. Ya hafta stop him!" she begged with small voice and flinched every time she heard Robert's fists making contact with Rhys body.

Ray however kept still, knowing he would stand no chance against Robert and the rest. He had no weapon. Robert had taken his colt. "I can't Sara…. Not yet. I promised your friend to get you out of here."

Suddenly the noises stopped and Rhys turned groaning onto his side. Robert stood panting over him. Then he grabbed Rhys' rifle and lowered the barrel against the young man's chest, however before he could pull the trigger one of the other men stepped up and stopped him.

"Don't shoot him, Robert. The Cartwright's will probably hear the gunshot and then they'll be after us." Mortimer said. "It's only a matter of time until they find our trail again. We'll ride some more, get further away in case they close to following and then we hang him."

Robert hesitated for a second then stepped back. The sudden outburst of violence seemingly forgotten. Sara freed herself out of Ray's grip and knelt down next to Rhys. The young man's face was badly bruised. Blood trickled from a cut above the cavity where his left eye once had been and down his cheek. Sara wiped it carefully away with the sleeve of Ray's coat. Then she glared up at Robert.

"You're an evil man an' I hope my daddy will shoot ya!" she growled then turned back to Rhys. He opened his remaining eye and gave her a small smile.

"It's alright Sara." He mumbled and took hold of her small hands. The child simply stared at him and tears welled up in her eyes.

"I…. I…. I…"

"Shhh, shh. Ah'm gonna be alright Sara. Ah promise. Ah've been through worse." He whispered and sat up wincing from the pain. Ray helped him to stand up, but was shoved aside by Mortimer.

"Leave him! Ya won't go near him again. Ya hear?" he growled. Sara tried to aim a good kick at his shins, but Ray was fast enough to pull her back. Robert turned towards them. "Keep that kid out of my way Raymond." He ordered with low voice. The man's hand was lying on the hilt of his colt and Raymond understood the gesture perfectly well. He picked the child up and held her close despite her squirming.

"Let me go! I wanna look after Rhys!" she cried. Robert had grabbed Rhys' hands and tied them to his saddle. "Ya hafta help him! Lemme go!" Suddenly she found herself across Ray's shoulder and the man went a few steps away from the camp. Mortimer's gaze followed him the whole way, but he relaxed when Ray stopped only twenty yards away from them. Sara felt Ray's strong hands as he stood her down on the ground again. Immediately she tried to make a dash for her friend, but Ray once again held her back.

"Will you stop it!" he hissed. "Robert is close to going completely nuts and I don't want you to get hurt! I promised your friend to get you out of here, but if you continue like this we'll both most likely end up dead!" To emphasize his point he gave her a small shake.

Sara stopped her struggling and looked up at him with tear-filled eyes. Ray sighed; the child was most likely still in shock. It was the only reasonable explanation for her sudden changes in behaviour. However he needed to get through to her. If she didn't stop provoking Robert with her actions, the man would most likely shoot her. Not knowing what to do, he picked her up again, supporting her backside with one arm while his other hand was resting on her back. It seemed to have been the right thing, because the child became very still, buried her face in his shoulder and wrapped her arms around his neck.

"I will get you out of here I promise." He whispered and rubbed her back. He felt her nod of understanding and resignation, so he turned and walked back to the camp, still rubbing soothing circles around her small back.

The others had readied themselves for the day's journey. Robert had handed Rhys' rifle and ammunition to Erik.

"We ride until the sun goes down." Robert called and kicked his horse into a quick canter. Ray was forced to mount his horse too with Sara in front of him. Mortimer rode close behind them as they left. Ray put an arm around the child and pulled her closer to him. Should he try to get away now? He wasn't sure. Mortimer was sure to have his gun pulled on him within seconds. They had to get into a dense forest; otherwise he would be shot down before he had gotten more than a hundred yards.

Sara sensed Ray's worry and tension. She tilted her head backwards so she could look up in his face. He had promised her that everything would be alright again and she trusted him. He had been very friendly from the beginning. He smiled down at her and stroked her hair.

"Soon!" He whispered.

However, Ray wasn't to get an opportunity to flee until the afternoon. They had been riding slowly careful not to leave too many tracks after them. Robert and Erik were riding at the front, Ray, Sara and Mortimer in the middle and at the end came the other two riders. During the day Sara had taken her mind off her worries and concentrated on her surroundings, she also paid close attention to the gang and by early afternoon had learnt their names. The red haired man's name was Gus. The one with the large ears was called Matt and the one who was injured Erik. Once she was home again, she would be able to tell everything to the Sheriff.

Suddenly Ray gripped her tighter and interrupted her thoughts. "Hold on!" He said softly, then he gave his horse a hard kick, which sent it into a full gallop. _Maybe they wouldn't dare to shoot him. Mortimer did stop Robert from shooting Rhys after all._ He thought hopefully, but his hopes were smashed immediately when the first shot rang out.

* * *

><p>Thanks to gaben who betaed this chapter so quickly for me and improved it a lot.<p>

To all those who read this chapter... I'm sorry but I don't think I will be able to update soon again. I'm busy with studying for my finals. I know I'm updating really irregularly but I just can't find enough time to write. Sorry for that, but I hope you could still enjoy this chapter, despite the little cliffy.


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